The sting is rated among the most painful of any insect, and it is almost never medically dangerous. It is brief — a few minutes of genuinely incapacitating pain — and it does not require treatment unless you react allergically. It will not sting unprovoked.
We identify, we don't diagnose. If you've been bitten or stung and symptoms develop, or you're worried, seek medical attention.
Size25–50 mm
MarkingsVery large, 25–50 mm, with a heavy blue-black iridescent body · Bright rust-orange wings, held out rather than folded flat
WhereOpen dry country, desert scrub and grassland, and flowering shrubs where the adults feed.
SeasonAdults in summer, most visible in the hottest months
How to tell it apart
Very large, 25–50 mm, with a heavy blue-black iridescent body
Bright rust-orange wings, held out rather than folded flat
Long trailing legs with hooked claws for gripping a spider
Slow, loping flight low over open ground
Often seen walking, antennae curling, quartering the ground for burrows
Where you’ll find it
The southern and southwestern United States, commonest through the desert southwest and Texas.
Open dry country, desert scrub and grassland, and flowering shrubs where the adults feed.
Adults in summer, most visible in the hottest months.
How it behaves
The name describes what the female does. She hunts a tarantula, stings it into permanent paralysis, drags it to a burrow and lays a single egg on it; the larva eats the still-living spider from the inside. The adults themselves feed on nectar and are frequently found on milkweed. Males cannot sting at all. Females are not aggressive and sting defensively — essentially always because somebody grabbed, stepped on or cornered one.
What a bite looks like
Very little to see. A small puncture with local redness that fades within a day. The sting site is not the story here.
Immediate, overwhelming, electric pain that peaks within seconds and subsides substantially after about five minutes. The standard advice from the entomologist who ranked it is simply to lie down and shout, because you will not be capable of anything useful and falling over is the real risk.
We identify, we don't diagnose. The pain alone does not need medical care. Seek attention for signs of an allergic reaction — swelling away from the sting site, difficulty breathing, or faintness.
A skin mark cannot confirm which animal caused it. Read the bug bite and sting guide for the limits and the symptoms that should end an online search.
You’ve found one indoors
Leave it alone and it will leave you alone. They are slow and easy to walk around. Do not handle one, and take a moment before picking up anything off desert ground in summer. They are important pollinators and there is no reason to kill one.
Common questions
How bad is a tarantula hawk sting really?
It is rated at the top of the sting pain index alongside the bullet ant. It is genuinely incapacitating for a few minutes and then fades quickly. It causes no lasting damage in people who are not allergic.
Will it sting me if I leave it alone?
Almost certainly not. Females sting when handled or trapped against skin. Males, which are common and look identical to most people, cannot sting at all.
Does it actually kill tarantulas?
It paralyses rather than kills. The spider stays alive and immobile while the wasp's larva feeds on it, which takes weeks. It is grim and it is also why the species exists.
Are they dangerous to dogs?
The same applies — very painful, rarely harmful. A dog that mouths one will have a bad few minutes. Watch for swelling or breathing difficulty and see a vet if either appears.
Seth Wollney · CC-BY