A parasitic wasp that prays on spiders?

Question

i observed a small black wasp dragging an immobilised garden spider [not an orb spider ] to it's liar.location - ontario canada.how unusual is this ? I thought only large parasitic wasps pray on tarantula' s in the south

Answer 1

There are a lot of different species of hunting wasps. Each species has its own specific prey; a fly-hunter will not hunt a spider or a caterpillar. They don't eat the prey, but lay eggs in their prey to feed the larvae when they hatch. Adult wasps generally eat nectar and they pollinate flowers.

Answer 2

The tarantula hawk, tarantula wasp and tarantula killer, are names of the large wasp that stings tarantulas for food for the wasp's young that emerge as larvae from the eggs that she lays in the tarantula's body. The wasp sting does not kill the tarantula but rather anesthetizes the spider and the was[ larvae feed upon the living tarantula. The species with which I am most familiar is the Texan tarantula hawk. Most of the tarantula predators are found in the southwestern U.S., and Mexico. Perhaps they are also found in the Central American and South American countries where tarantulas abound.

Answer 3

I have seen those little black wasps of various sizes from half the size of a harvester or wood ant to almost the size of a little finger. They all seem to have the same characteristic flicking wing that must warn birds or other predators. Usually those types of wasps go after spiders but some closely related types go after all sorts of other bugs to lay their eggs on.