Lepeletier-1845
Guides
Pepsis menechma
Elegant Tarantula Hawk
Pepsis menechma, commonly known as the elegant tarantula hawk, is a large spider wasp in the family Pompilidae. In 2005, Vardy synonymized 18 previously recognized species under this name, establishing it as a single widespread transamerican species with extensive color variation across its range. The species is distributed from North America through South America. Like other tarantula hawks, females hunt tarantulas as hosts for their larvae.