About Tarantula Hawks

The state of New Mexico adopted the Tarantula Hawk as their official state insect in 1989.

We have them during the summers in our backyard and they are not aggressive toward humans, unless of course you try to pick them up or accidentally press against one. I took a couple of photos of a very large one on rabbitbrush. They are really interesting to look at.

Tarantula Hawks legs have hooked claws to control and subdue their victims, and they have powerful stingers. Females have stingers up to 1/3 inch long and the sting is said to be one of the most painful in the insect world. According to one researcher, he described the pain as "...immediate, excruciating pain that simply shuts down one's ability to do anything, except, perhaps, scream.." (wikipedia)

The females hunt for wandering tarantulas to sting and paralyze. Once captured, the tarantula is dragged into the female's burrow or a specially prepared nest where she lays a single egg on the still living tarantula. When the larva hatches, it sucks the fluids from the tarantula and as the larva grows, the tarantula will die and the larva will consume the entire body, leaving the vital organs intact until last, so they wil stay fresh.

Interestingly, because Tarantula Hawks have such large stingers, they have very few enemies. The only animal that is able to eat them is the Roadrunner (BeeBeep!)