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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies (Hymenoptera) » Aculeata - Ants, Bees and Stinging Wasps » Apoidea sans Anthophila – Apoid Wasps » Square-headed Wasps, Sand Wasps, and Allies (Crabronidae) » Bembicinae » Sand Wasps (Bembicini) » Bembicina » Bembix

Genus Bembix

white-ribboned wasp - Bembix americana - female Sand Wasp - Bembix Sand Wasp - Bembix americana - female large wasp - Bembix Sand Wasp - Bembix Family Crabronidae ID please - Bembix Bee: Leaf-Cutter? - Bembix Bembix (oculata?) or Steniola - Bembix
Classification
Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Hymenoptera (Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies)
No Taxon (Aculeata - Ants, Bees and Stinging Wasps)
No Taxon (Apoidea sans Anthophila – Apoid Wasps)
Family Crabronidae (Square-headed Wasps, Sand Wasps, and Allies)
Subfamily Bembicinae
Tribe Bembicini (Sand Wasps)
Subtribe Bembicina
Genus Bembix
Other Common Names
Sand Wasps (also applies to closely related genera including Bicyrtes).
Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
"Bembex" is a misspelling.
Numbers
21 spp. in our area(1), ~350 spp. worldwide(2)
Identification
Abdomen black with broad white, yellowish, or light bluish curving bands that often meet at the dorsal midline.
Range
Throughout NA
Habitat
Usually sandy areas; nest holes are dug in the sand; best opportunity to observe individuals is on dunes or where vegetation is sparse
Season
Summer
Food
Females provision their nest with flies which the larvae feed on (a single developing larva may eat more than twenty flies)
Remarks
Provisioning is progressive. The females provide a greater number of prey over subsequent days during larval growth. Adults are excellent diggers and can disappear below the surface of loose sand within seconds.
Nest in aggregations. When a potential predator approaches, they mob it -- males fly up at it, buzzing loudly without harm to the predator.(3)
See Also
Bicyrtes generally have abdominal bands that are straighter and don't quite meet at the dorsal midline
Works Cited
1.Ascher J.S., Pickering J. (2017) Discover Life bee species guide and world checklist (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Anthophila)
2.Pulawski W.J. (2003-) Catalog of Sphecidae sensu lato (Apoidea excluding Apidae)
3.Insect Behavior
Robert W. Matthews and Janice R. Matthews. 1988. Robert E. Krieger Publishing Co.
Contributed by Beatriz Moisset on 7 January, 2005 - 6:59pm
Additional contributions by Robin McLeod, Aaron Schusteff, v belov, Marci Hess, PaleoJon
Last updated 14 October, 2023 - 10:27am

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