Bug FAQTyde's Sand Wasp
Podalonia tydei · Order: Hymenoptera · Family: Sphecidae
Adult females reach about 22 mm and males about 17 mm in length. They hunt Agrotis innominata caterpillars, placing one parasitized larva in each single-cell nest.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The head, mesosoma, legs and the rear half of the abdomen are black, while the front half of the abdomen is a fulvous-red colour. Fine silver-white hairs cover the head, the coxae and the abdomen.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Females grow to about 22.2 mm long, males to about 17.5 mm.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
They favour exposed sand, especially coastal dunes.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Females search the ground for Agrotis innominata larvae, which they paralyse and place in nests for their eggs. Each nest holds a single parasitised caterpillar on which the wasp lays its eggs.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
After capturing a host larva, the female digs a single-cell nest in the sand. Mating occurs in March, with the male gripping the female’s neck with his mandibles.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are active in strong sunlight and disappear when the sky becomes overcast.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 1 of 51 states and DC. Most records: New York.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
What do they eat?
Females hunt Agrotis innominata caterpillars, placing one paralyzed larva in each nest for their eggs.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Sphecidae)
Yellow-legged Mud-dauber WaspSceliphron caementariumCan sting
Common Blue Mud-dauber WaspChalybion californicumCan sting
Great Golden Digger WaspSphex ichneumoneus
Great Black Digger WaspSphex pensylvanicusCan sting
Gold-marked Thread-waisted WaspEremnophila aureonotata
Mexican Grass-carrying WaspIsodontia mexicanaSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podalonia_tydei
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.