THREAD-WAISTED WASP

any insect of the subfamily Sphecinae belonging to the family Sphecidae (order Hymenoptera). They are large, common, solitary (nonsocial) wasps, usually more than 2.5 centimetres (about 1 inch) long. The common name derives from the stalklike anterior (front) end of the abdomen. Thread-waisted wasps are parasitic on insects and spiders. The host, paralyzed by the wasp's sting, is often numbed by malaxationa pinching or crushing of the neck by the wasp's pincer-like jaws. The wasp seals the host's body in a mud cell with an egg. Members of the tribe Sphecini, often black with partly orange or yellow abdomens, nest in burrows and provision their cells with caterpillars, which are eaten by the wasp larva. The mud daubers (tribe Sceliphronini) are commonly black with yellow spots and yellow legs; some are metallic blue. They usually build several mud cells together, often constructing them in the corners of eaves or ceilings. The cells are provisioned with the bodies of paralyzed spiders. Wasps of the tribe Podiini provision their cells with cockroaches. Members of the tribe Chlorionini nest in the ground and provide grasshoppers and crickets for their larvae.