Identification, Images, & Information
For Insects, Spiders & Their Kin
For the United States & Canada
Photo#15789
tarantula hawk - Pepsis - female

tarantula hawk - Pepsis - Female
Weslaco, Texas, USA
October 23, 2004

Wasp
I had one of these fly into my house tonight at 8:30 pm when I opened my front door, in Fallbrook, CA. Scarey

Female
This looks very much like a female "Pepsis cerberus" species-type of Pepsis menechma. Aaron Schusteff recently add this new non-taxon or sub-species page. You may want to ask him about this gal, from Texas.
I'm not sure of the exact ranges. A good close-up of her tibial spines might confirm. The thin flagellum and 6 abdominal segments = ♀

tarantula wasp
I just had my first sighting in my yard in Torrance Ca. What a beauty it was! As it walked across the lawn, I wondered what this very large thing was. Amazing colors and movement. As my cat approached, it took off and left the yard. When I described it, I found your site. I agree with Sharon who posted on 4/13/16. This insect should not be killed when outside and doing us no harm.

Tarantula Hawk wasp
walked out my front door this morning and found a Tarantula Hawk wasp on my front porch, large and scary