Guiding Questions
1)
What is the common name(s) of the genus pepsis?
a.
Tarantula hawk, tarantula wasp
2)
What is the classification of the genus pepsis?
a.
Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Hymenoptera (Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies)
Family Pompilidae (Spider Wasps)
Genus Pepsis (Tarantula Hawks)
Species P. thisbe
3)
Where do the genus pepsis live? What type of ecosystem?
a.
Open areas, deserts, in the SW U.S.
4)
What is the life cycle of the genus pepsis?
a.
Mating takes
place on flowers, or sometimes near a "hilltop", such as a large
cactus, defended by the male. Females seek out tarantula burrows, paralyze
them, and bury it in a burrow, laying a single egg. Larvae feed on the
paralyzed spider.
5)
How long does
the genus pepsis live?
a.
Males live 1-2 months, but females live longer
6)
What does the genus pepsis eat?
a.
Nectar and milkweed
7)
What is the anatomy of the genus pepsis?
a.
Blue-black body with orange wings, made up of a
head, thorax, abdomen, 6 legs and antenna
b.
8)
Interesting facts about the genus pepsis.
a.
Females
lay the egg in the body of a tarantula, and the larva feeds off the stomach of
the tarantula; though they are not aggressive, if provoked, the tarantula wasp
has one of the strongest stings in the United States.
9)
What animals, plants, and other organisms exist
in the desert?
a.
Rats, mice, chipmunks, toads, cacti, moss
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