Thread-waisted wasps
(Subfamily Sphecinae)
Overview • Description • Distribution • Taxonomy
_01.jpg "thread-waisted wasp (Sphecinae)")
Overview
Sphecinae is a subfamily of common thread-waisted wasps. There are more than 270 species in 5 genera worldwide, 35 species in 4 genera North America north of Mexico, and at least 10 species in Minnesota.
Females build nests in the ground and provision them with paralyzed insects or spiders.
Description
The base of the abdomen is contracted into a thin stalk, making the body appear “thread-waisted”. On the middle leg there are two spurs at the tip of the fourth leg segment (tibia). There are two lobes at the base of the hindwing. The inner lobe (vannal lobe) is large.
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| 10/31/2025 | ||
Taxonomy
Order
Hymenoptera (ants, bees, wasps, and sawflies)
Suborder
Apocrita (narrow-waisted wasps, ants, and bees)
Infraorder
Aculeata (ants, bees, and stinging wasps)
Superfamily
Apoidea (apoid wasps, bees, sphecoid wasps)
Family
Sphecidae (thread-waisted wasps)
Subordinate Taxa
Tribe Prionychini 
Tribe Sphecini
Tribe Stangeellini
Synonyms
Common Names
This subfamily has no common name, The common namd of the family Sphecidae is thread-waisted wasps, and it is applied here for convenience.
Glossary
Tibia
The fourth segment of an insect leg, after the femur and before the tarsus (foot). The fifth segment of a spider leg or palp. Plural: tibiae.
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