The following images of a sand wasp photographed in Alice Springs, Central Australia is thought to belong to the subfamily Bembicinae.
Genus suggestions include Bembecinus or Bembix.
Theses are a group of wasps commonly called a “sand wasp”, due to that they nest in the sand. There are many genus, across many species that nest in the sand.
There are thought to be at least 200 species of Bembecinus.
There are thought to be around 380 species of Bembix.

In the following video, you can see the samd wasps in a frenetic “mating balls”. Usually these mating balls consist of one female with males enclosed around her.










The following images are closeups (some unfortunately are not very sharp).




















































- Scientific classification
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Arthropoda
- Class: Insecta
- Informal: Pterygotes
- Order: Hymenoptera
- Superfamily: Apoidea
- Informal: Spheciformes
- Family: Crabronidae
- Subfamily: Bembicinae
- Genus: suggestions have been
- Genus: Bembecinus
- Genus: Bembix
Footnote & References
- Bembecinus quinquespinosus, iNaturalistAU, https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/taxa/265841-Bembecinus-quinquespinosus
- Bembecinus quinquespinosus (Say, 1823), GBIF | Global Biodiversity Information Facility, https://www.gbif.org/species/7374129
- Phenotypic correlates of mating success in the sand wasp Bembecinus quinquespinosus (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae), author Kevin O’Neill, ResearchGate, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/238018816_Phenotypic_correlates_of_mating_success_in_the_sand_wasp_Bembecinus_quinquespinosus_Hymenoptera_Sphecidae
WaspsAustralian Mud Nest Wasps Bembicinae Bembix Eumeninae Mud Wasp Orange-collared Spider Wasp Potter Wasp Pseudabispa bicolor ssp. nigrocinctoides Yellow and Black Wasp Yellow Hairy Flower Wasp Yellow Hairy Flower Wasp – R tasmaniensis