Indian Spider Wasp vs Silver Birch Web-Spinning Sawfly

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Indian Spider Wasp Silver Birch Web-Spinning Sawfly
Scientific Name Hemipepsis tamisieri Pamphilius sylvaticus
Order Hymenoptera Hymenoptera
Family Pompilidae Pamphiliidae
Size 25-45 mm 9-12 mm
Habitat Heathland Woodlands
Diet Predators Herbivores
Regions Africa, Middle East Europe
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Indian Spider Wasp

A large dark-winged spider wasp from Africa and the Middle East that hunts large burrowing spiders. It is one of the biggest pompilids in the Old World.

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Did You Know?

Like its American tarantula hawk relatives, it possesses one of the most painful stings of any African insect.

Silver Birch Web-Spinning Sawfly

A flat-bodied sawfly with long filiform antennae and a broad head. Larvae roll or fold birch leaves with silk and feed within the shelters.

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Did You Know?

The flattened body shape of pamphiliid sawflies is an adaptation that allows adults to squeeze into tight spaces in leaf litter and bark crevices.