The Tarantula Lost

Back in April 2009, I posted about our sighting of a Tarantula Hawk (see bottom section) at the nearby Arizona-Sonoran Desert Museum. I'll spare you the gory details of what the Tarantula Hawk does to the Tarantula -- you can read the summary on that post if you want -- but suffice to say that the Tarantula Hawk, actually a wasp, is large enough and mean enough to capture a full grown tarantula.

While I didn't see the actual battle, I did get to witness the aftermath as the Tarantula Hawk pulled the now-paralyzed tarantula into its nest. Click to enlarge the images if you need to -- the surrounding plant life makes some of the details difficult to see.

The tarantula lies near the Tarantula Hawk's hole. The Hawk will return in a moment:



The Tarantula Hawk is on the left. The previous blog showed one with red wings -- that is a juvenile, and their wings go to blue as they age:



The Hawk pulls the tarantula towards the hole:



Just the legs left to go in:



A peek in the hole after the tarantula disappears into it:



Lunch will soon be served.