2007 Photograph, Cicada Killer Wasp (Sphecius speciosus, Crabronid Wasp Family, Crabronidae, this wasp's sting is a quarter-inch long, Occoquan Bay NWR, Woodbridge, Virginia, © 2020.
As you can guess, this wasp preys on cicadas, stinging them to paralyze the victim and then dragging it or gliding with it back to the wasp's burrow. The wasp will put one to three cicadas in a burrow and then lay a single egg which will hatch into a larva which will feed on the cicadas. |
