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Bembecinae

Bembicine wasps of Africa and Madagascar

(Life: Kingdom: Metazoa (animals); Phylum: Arthropoda; Class: Hexapoda; Order: Hymenoptera; Superfamily: Apoidea; Family: Bembicidae)

Classification

  Afrogorytes Menke
  Ammatomus Costa
Bembecinus Costa
Bembix Fabricius
  Gorytes Latreille
  Handlirschia Kohl
  Harpactus Shuckard
  Hoplisoides Gribodo
  Kohlia Handlirsch
  Lestiphorus Lepeletier
  Sphecius Dahlbom
Stizoides Guérin-Méneville
Stizus Latreille, 1802

Distribution

Worldwide.

Biology

Solitary predatory wasps, provisioning nest with paralyzed prey for consumption by the larvae. For further details on nest situation, nest structure, method of nest construction, prey provisioning and oviposition, life history, sleeping and associated organisms see Gess & Gess (2014).

References

Bohart, R.M. 1997. Notes on Bembecinus of southern Africa, Madagascar, and Australia with descriptions of new species (Hymenoptera, Sphecidae, Nyssoninae, Stizini). Journal of Hymenoptera Research 6: 163-177.

Bohart, R.M. & Menke, A.S. 1976. Sphecid Wasps of the World: a Generic Revision. University of California Press, Berkeley, California.

Brothers D.J. 1999. Phylogeny and evolution of wasps, ants and bees (Hymenoptera, Chrysidoidea, Vespoidea and Apoidea) Zoologica Scripta 28: 233–250.

Finnamore, A.T. & Michener, C.D. 1993. Superfamily Apoidea (pp. 279-357). In GOULET, H. & HUBER, J. (eds). Hymenoptera of the World: an identification guide to families. Research Branch, Agriculture Canada, Ottawa, Canada, 668 pp.

Gadallah, NS. 2020. Biodiversity of the aculeate wasps (Hymenoptera: Aculeata) of the Arabian Peninsula: Apoidea (Spheciformes), Crabronidae. Zootaxa 4754(1): 20–73. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4754.1.6

Gess, F.W. & Gess, S.K. 2014. Geographical distributions of Bembix (Hymenoptera, Crabronidae, Bembicinae) in southern Africa, with notes on biology. Journal of Hymenoptera Research 36: 53–130, doi: 10.3897/JHR.36.6491

Gess, S.K. & Gess, F.W. 2014. Wasps and bees in southern Africa. SANBI Biodiversity Series 24. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria. 320 pp.

Links

CATALOG OF WORLD SPHECIDAE sensu lato (= Apoidea excluding bees) compiled by
Wojciech J. Pulawski (California Academy of Sciences).

Credits

Photographs © Joan Young or photographs © Simon van Noort (Iziko Museums of South Africa).


Web author Simon van Noort (Iziko South African Museum)

 

Citation: van Noort, S. 2025. WaspWeb: Hymenoptera of the World. URL: www.waspweb.org (accessed on <day/month/year>).

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