I had always heard and
read that the Tarantula Hawks fed on Tarantulas and have seen video of mom
taking a tarantula into her den and laying eggs on it. The young
Tarantula Hawks feed on the tarantula until they are mature enough to make
their way in the world. From my observations of hundreds of these
3-4" wasps in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains near
Bakersfield they also eat the nectar of the milkweed, Asclepias eriocarpa,
Indian Milkweed. There were several sizes or instars of Tarantula
Hawks present, with the smallest being around an inch long and the largest
like this one about 2.5" long. Many
other insects were on the milkweed including skippers, beetles and ants.
This
Tarantula Hawk image is available in high resolution and is part of our stock photo
collection.
