01/09/2025
One of my favorite Utah Insects.
It is called a tarantula hawk because it hunts tarantulas (and other large spiders) to use in the wasp’s reproductive cycle. The tarantula wasp will approach a tarantula and cause the spider to rear its legs, thus exposing its abdomen. The wasp will sting the spider to paralyze it. The wasp will lay an egg on the paralyzed spider and drag it to a hole, bury it, and cover up the hole. When the wasp egg hatches, the larvae eats the flesh of the living tarantula for about 35 days, then spins a cocoon and pupates over the winter. If the wasp egg fails to hatch, the spider can recover.
