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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies (Hymenoptera) » Aculeata - Ants, Bees and Stinging Wasps » Spider Wasps, Velvet Ants and allies (Pompiloidea) » Spider Wasps (Pompilidae) » Pepsinae » Tarantula-hawk Wasps and Allies (Pepsini) » Tarantula-hawk Wasps (Pepsis)
Photo#29940
Black Wasp ? - Pepsis
Copyright © 2005 Randy Finn

Black Wasp ? - Pepsis
Ulysses, Grant County, Kansas, USA
August 29, 2005
Size: 1 1/2" to 1 3/4"
This photo was taken at about 5:30 PM, is very large wasp looking creature, scared the wife for sure. Would appreciate any help on an ID for this...
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Contributed by Randy Finn on 30 August, 2005 - 7:05pm
Last updated 7 September, 2005 - 7:33pm

Pepsis
In Kansas this appears to be a true Pepsis species. One of the big spider hunters. The Tarantula Hawk is in this genus but there are several that take large spiders from other groups.
… Herschel Raney, 30 August, 2005 - 7:52pm login or register to post comments

 
I agree.
Definitely a Pepsis. I think there are only one or two species that make it that far east, and it is not P. elegans, which has black wings and orange antennae. That leaves P. formosa?
… Eric R. Eaton, 31 August, 2005 - 12:45pm login or register to post comments

 
Black Wasp
Thank you so much for your reply. This is the largest wasp we have ever seen. The size that I gave was conservative.
… Randy Finn, 30 August, 2005 - 8:32pm login or register to post comments

 
Pepsis photo
This Pepsis appears to be P. grossa (formerly P. formosa/pattoni), which is the largest species normally found in the USA. A slightly larger West Indies species blows in now and then along the Gulf states. Several species of South American Pepsis wasps are almost twice as big, having bodies over 6 cm long and wingspans near 12 cm. Visit the Snow Entomological Museum in Lawrence, KS and ask someone there to show you neotropical Pepsis in their collections.
… David M Williams, 9 January, 2006 - 4:37pm login or register to post comments

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