First we had heard of it from other cruising couples. We didn't really believe it:
The
Tarantula Hawk is a wasp, and a sub species of it, "Pepsis Grossa", lives around here. A wasp that preys on tarantulas. The life-cycle includes the tarantula being dragged alive into an underground nest, a wasp-egg put into the tarantula, the wasp larva then eating up the still living tarantula from the inside. Ok, so far, maybe believable.
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| Tarantula Hawk |
The other part of info we got on that wasp: The sting is supposed to be the most painful sting nature has come up with, with comments like "blinding, fierce, shockingly electric". It is supposed to only last minutes, but when stung, you can't control yourself, can only lay down, scream and wait....
A bit of research confirmed most of above. Yikes!
And then, on our latest hike, we saw a few, this one is the best picture we got, when it landed on the road. The black body and the copper colored wings are the telltales, plus it is rather large.
As a distancing & exercise routine we have mapped out a 5 mile hike over the hills and try to do this at least twice a week.
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| are they waiting for us ? |
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| another "Find the Dirk" |
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| Nice views every time |
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| Better pic from a hike a couple days later |
