Philanthus wasps, also known as bee wolves, prey upon bees. I photographed the wasps—and a number of associated species—at two sites, one in Port Angeles, WA, south of Peninsula College (upper right) and the other at the Dungeness Wildlife Refuge in Sequim, WA. (lower right) on many visits from mid July through mid August, 2006.
video of activity at the college site
At the college site, I observed Philanthus attack halictid bees (Halictis rubicundus) (see page 3) in the air, sting them (1 | 2), grasp them with their middle legs (lower left and in images below) and fly away with them. The wasps appear to light on the sand and wait for a bee to fly overhead.
with prey 2 | the prey bee in this image (Halictis rubicundus)
with prey 3 (2007, college)
The wasp drags each bee into an underground hole and lays an egg on one or more bees. After emerging from a hole, Philanthus often covers its hole. Able to recognize the site of the hole after it’s covered, the Philanthus lands, redigs the hole and enters in just a few seconds (making them hard to photograph digging).
Philanthus digs with its front legs while standing on the middle and back legs. In movie 1 below, a Philanthus digs into a hidden hole. In movie 2, she covers the hole, then redigs it. Movie 3 is a long, unedited clip showing the wasp lighting, digging and entering a hole, then, after a long pause, exiting and covering the hole.
Philanthus wasps are slim, with a large head, and a yellow face (peeking from a hole). Among characteristics used to identify Philanthus is a constriction between the first and second abdominal segments (1 | 2).
I observed Philanthus adults feeding on Pearly Everlasting (Anaphalis margaritacea), Yarrow (Achillea millefolium), and Common Tansy (Tancetum vulgare).
See pages 2 through 5 for more species photographed along with Philanthus at the two sites. Web searches on the names of the various wasps and bees shown here yield much interesting information.