Great black digger wasp

Great black digger wasp

Sphex pensylvanicus

Least Concern

Quick Facts

Kingdom: Animalia
Abundance: Abundant
Habitat: Grassland, Urban
Activity: Diurnal (Active during day)

An important predator and pollinator who’s importance is often overlooked due to fear. The Great Black Digger wasp is a large, completely black wasp with a thin waist. Their wings are smoky with a blueish sheen. Their bodies are also covered in many fine hairs that collect pollen during their trips to the garden. These insects are typically unbothered by humans minding their business and will only sting if threatened. Males do not have a stinger.

Diet

Insects such as katydids which is fed to their young and nectar from flowers

Activity Pattern

Diurnal (Active during day)
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Sphecidae
Genus: Sphex
Species: Sphex pensylvanicus

Scientific Name

Sphex pensylvanicus

Behavior

Adult females build an underground nest which they provision with insects particularly of the orthoptera order (crickets, katydids, and grasshoppers). Prey are stung three times, once in the neck and twice in the thorax, and are paralyzed by the wasp's sting. The prey are then carried to the nest. The Great Black wasp is an important pollinator of plants including the milkweeds Asclepias syriaca and A. incarnata. It has also been reported on Daucus carota, Eryngium yuccifolium, Melilotus albus, Monarda punctata (beebalm), and Pycnanthemum virginianum (mountain mint).

Ecological Role

Wasps are very important predators of insects and very effective pollinators

Activity Pattern

Diurnal (Active during day)

Habitat Types

Grassland
Urban

Geographic Distribution

Distributed across most of the contiguous United States and northern Mexico

Local Abundance

Abundant

Conservation Status

Least Concern

This species is widespread and abundant. No immediate threat to survival.

How You Can Help

  • Report sightings to contribute to population monitoring
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No field notes or observations available for this species.

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