Superfamily SPHECOIDEA 1585 



Enodia Dahlbom, 1843. Hym. Europaea, v. 1, p. 28. Preocc. 



Type-species: Sphex albisectus Lepeletier and Serville. Desig. by Kohl, 1885. 

 Harpactopus Smith, 1856. Cat. Hym. Brit. Mus., v. 4, p. 264. 



Type-species: Harpactopus crudelis Smith. Desig. by Patton, 1881. 

 Parasphex Smith, 1856. Cat. Hym. Brit. Mus., v. 4, p. 267. 



Type-species: Sphex albisectus Lepeletier and Serville. Desig. by Kohl, 1885. 

 Gastrosphaeria Costa, 1858. Fauna Regn. Napoli, Imen. Acul., Sphecidea, p. 10. 



Type-species: Gastrosphaeria anthraciyia Costa. Monotypic. 

 Psevdosphex Taschenberg, 1869. Ztschr. Gesam. Naturw. Halle 34: 420. Preocc. 



Type-species: Pseudosphex pumilio Taschenberg. Monotypic. 

 Calosphex Kohl, 1890. K K. Naturhist. Hofmus., Ann. 5: 113. 



Type-species: Sphex niveatus Dufour. Desig. by Pate, 1937. 

 Neosphex Reed, 1894. Ann. Univ. Chile 85: 627. 



Type-sp)ecies: Neosphex albospiniferus Reed. Monotypic. 



Our North American species dig simple, shallow unicellular nests in a variety of soil types. 

 The grasshopper prey is captured before the nest is dug, although some extralimital species are 

 known to prepare the nest before capturing the single prey specimen. 



Taxonomy: Parker, 1960. Pan-Pacific Ent. 36: 205-208, 1 pi. (key to N. A. spp.). 



Biology: Evans, 1958. Ent. Soc. Amer., Ann. 51: 177-186, 3 figs, (nesting behavior). 

 atratus (Lepeletier). Transcont. in southern Canada and all of U. S.; Mexico (Durango). 



Ecology: Nests in a variety of soils, the burrow varying from L-shaped to curved to 

 oblique; nest has a single cell and is provisioned with one prey specimen. Parasite: 

 Pseudoxenos duryi (Pierce); Metopia argyrocephala (Meig.), Senotainia sp.; Stizoides 

 unicinctus (Say). Prey: Ag^eneotettix d. deorum Scud., Aulocara elliotti Thorn., Merrniria 

 neomexicana Thom., Arphia xanthoptera Burm., Dissosteira Carolina L., Pardalophora 

 phoenicoptera Burm., Sphamgemon collare Scud., Trimerotropis citritui Scud., 

 Melanoplus angustipennis Dodge, M. arizonae Scud., M. bispirwsus Scud., M. bivittattis 

 Say, M. devastator Scud., M. differentialis Thom., M. femurrubrum DeG., M. foedus 

 Scud., M. lakimis Scud., M. spretus Walsh, M. spp., Schistocerca lineata Scud. Predator 

 Apiomerus spissipes (Say). 



Sphex labrosa Harris, 1835. In Hitchcock, Rpt. Geol. Mineral. Bot. Zool. Mass., p. 588. 

 Nom. Nud. 



Sphex atrata Lepeletier, 1845. Hist. Nat. Ins., Hym., v. 3, p. 355. 9 . 



Priononyx brunnipes Cresson, 1872. Amer. Ent. Soc., Trans. 4: 213. d. 



Taxonomy: Evans and Lin, 1956. Amer. Ent. Soc., Trans. 81: 142, figs. 15-20 Oarva). —Evans, 

 1959. Amer. Ent. Soc, Trans. 75: 147 (larva). 



Biology: Peckham and Peckham, 1898. Wis. Geol. Nat. Hist. Survey, Bui. 2: 171-174 (nest, 

 prey). —Bradley, 1908. Ent. Soc. Amer., Ann. 1: 128-129 (sleeping aggregation). 

 —Williams, 1914 (1913). Kans. Univ. Sci. Bui. 8: 227-230, pi. 33, fig. 2 (nest, prey, parasite). 

 — Rau and Rau, 1918. Wasp studies afield, pp. 159-175, figs. 36-39 (nest, prey, parasite). 

 — Rau, 1922. St. Louis Acad. Sci., Trans. 24: 23 (prey). — Strandtmann, 1945. Ent. Soc. 

 Amer., Ann. 38: 308-310 (nest). —Evans, 1958. Ent. Soc. Amer., Ann. 51: 178-181, fig. 1 

 (prey transport, nest, parasite, Ufe cycle). 

 canadensis (Provancher). B. C. to Man., south to Calif., Ariz., Colo, and Nebr., Ont., N. J., Va. 

 Priononyx Canadensis Provancher, 1887. Addit. Corr. Faune Ent. Canada Hym., p. 258. 9. 

 Sphex excisus Kohl, 1890. K. K. Naturhist. Hofmus., Ann. 5: 362. 6. 

 fervens (Linnaeus). Calif, to Tex., south to South America, West Indies. Ecology: Nests in 

 sand, the burrow oblique, the cell horizontal and provisioned with one prey specimen. 

 Prey: XyleiLs sp., probably centralis Rehn, Schistocerca cancellata (Serv.). 

 Sphex fervens Linnaeus, 1758. Syst. Nat., ed. 10, p. 569. 9. Type from West Indies or 



Surinam, not Indies. 

 Pepsis Johannis Fabricius, 1804. Systema Piezatorum, p. 208. 9 . 

 Sphex Doumerci Lepeletier, 1845. Hist. Nat. Ins. Hym., v. 3, p. 357. 9 . 

 Priotwnyx striata Smith, 1856. Cat. Hym. Brit. Mus., v. 4, p. 266. 

 Sphex {Priononyx) laerma Cameron, 1897. Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist. (6) 19: 370. 



