@longislandaquarium: Meet the Tarantula Hawk Wasp! This species, native to the middle Americas, is known for its magnificent colors, unique lifecycle, and painful sting. Coloring💙🧡 This wasp has a beautiful blue body, with shades varying from royal to navy blue, and bright orange wings. Fun fact - it’s the state insect of New Mexico! Life Cycle 🕷️🔄 If you were wondering why the first name of this species is tarantula, this explanation of their life cycle will answer that for you! Basically, the female wasps use their stinger to paralyze certain types of tarantulas and lay a single egg in its body. The larvae will grow and develop inside of the host spider and then emerge as an adult. Sting ❤️‍🩹 These wasps are famous for having one of the most painful Hymenopteran (e.g. bees, ants, wasps) stings! In fact, a scale was made to measure the severity of sting pain of certain insects called the Schmidt Sting Pain Index. Out of four levels, the Tarantula Hawk is ranked - you guessed it - at a level 4! The good news is that their stings are not deadly. The bad news is that with each sting, the wasp injects a large amount of venom, which unlucky victims have described as electrifying ⚡️ #tarantulahawkwasp

Long Island Aquarium

Open In TikTok:

Region: US

Monday 15 July 2024 22:56:47 GMT