— see Cryptocheilus bicolor (Orange Spider Wasp)
The Orange-collared Spider Wasp (Ferreola handschini), belonging to the family Pompilidae is a medium size wasp, blue-black in colour and with blue-black tinted winds. It has an orange prothorax.
Some great images of the Orange-collared Spider Wasp (Ferreola handschini) can be found on iNaturalistAU – https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/taxa/701339-Ferreola-handschini
Spider wasps (family Pompilidae) are solitary wasps. They prey on spiders to feed their larvae or they parasitise other spider wasps. They do not form colonies to defend nests and are not aggressive.
The Orange-collared Spider Wasp (Ferreola handschini) in this video is approximately 20 mm in body length size. The video shows the wasp preparing the brood chamber before depositing its prey, a spider as food for its larvae.
The Orange-collared Spider Wasp created its nesting chamber in the ground. One it has cleaned it out and placed the spider prey in the nesting chamber with the wasp’s larvae, it then covers over the hole.
- Scientific classification
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Arthopoda
- Subphylum: Hexapoda
- Class: Insecta
- Informal: Pterygotes
- Order: Hymenoptera
- Suborder: Apocrita
- Super Family: Vespoidea
- Family: Pompilidae
- Subfamily: Pompilinae
- Genus: Ferreola
- Species: Ferreola handschini
Footnote & References
- Atlas of Living Australia: Ferreola handschini, https://bie.ala.org.au/species/urn:lsid:biodiversity.org.au:afd.taxon:c1774e08-9872-4e00-98a7-e58aea449c27#overview
- Orange-collared Spider Wasp (Ferreola handschini) can be found on iNaturalistAU – https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/taxa/701339-Ferreola-handschini
- Life in a Southern Forest: Invertebrates Gallery – Orange-collared Spider Wasp, https://southernforestlife.net/invertebrates-gallery/fqovc0e5o9bjsjflth1hy3h96wqcqi
WaspsWasps Index Australian Large Wasps Australian Mud Nest Wasps Mud Wasp Velvet Ants Abispa ephippium Acarozumia amaliae Aulacidae Australodynerus Bembix Bembicinae Bethylidae Blue Hairy Flower Wasp Braconidae Chrysididae Cryptocheilus bicolor (Orange Spider Wasp) Delta latreillei (Potter Wasp) Eumeninae Delta philantes Ferreola handschini (Orange-collared Spider Wasp) Flower Wasps Gasteruptiid Wasp Hairy Flower Wasps Isodontia (Grass-carrying Wasp) Lissopimpla excelsa (Orchid Dupe Wasp) Mutillidae Paralastor sp. Pseudabispa bicolor ssp. nigrocinctoides Radumeris radula (Yellow Hairy Flower Wasp) Radumeris tasmaniensis (Yellow Hairy Flower Wasp) Sceliphron laetum Thynnid Wasps Tiphiidae Torymus Yellow and Black Wasp
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