The Bembicini, or sand wasps, are a large

tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide use of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. The definition is contested, in part due to conflict ...

of bembicid

wasp A wasp is any insect of the narrow-waisted suborder Apocrita of the order Hymenoptera which is neither a bee nor an ant; this excludes the broad-waisted sawflies (Symphyta), which look somewhat like wasps, but are in a separate suborder ...

s, comprising 20

genera Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial s ...

. Bembicines are

parasitoid In evolutionary ecology, a parasitoid is an organism that lives in close association with its host (biology), host at the host's expense, eventually resulting in the death of the host. Parasitoidism is one of six major evolutionarily stable str ...

s on various groups of

insect Insects (from Latin ') are Hexapoda, hexapod invertebrates of the class (biology), class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (Insect morphology#Head, head, ...

s. The type of prey captured tends to be rather consistent within each genus, with flies (

Diptera Flies are insects of the order Diptera, the name being derived from the Greek δι- ''di-'' "two", and πτερόν ''pteron'' "wing". Insects of this order use only a single pair of wings to fly, the hindwings having evolved into advance ...

) being the most common type of prey taken. Nests are typically short, simple burrows, with a single enlarged chamber at the bottom which is stocked with freshly paralysed prey items for the developing wasp

larva A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...

; the egg may sometimes be laid before the chamber is completely stocked. It is common for numerous females to excavate nests within a small area where the soil is suitable, creating large and sometimes very dense nesting aggregations, which tend to attract various species of

parasitic Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives (at least some of the time) on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The ent ...

flies and wasps, many of which are cleptoparasites; in some cases, the sand wasps prey on their own

parasite Parasitism is a Symbiosis, close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives (at least some of the time) on or inside another organism, the Host (biology), host, causing it some harm, and is Adaptation, adapted str ...

s (e.g.,), a surprisingly rare phenomenon in the animal kingdom. Although sand wasps are normally yellow and black, some are black and white with bright green eyes.

Genera

Subtribe Bembicina

*'' Bembix'' *'' Bicyrtes'' *'' Carlobembix'' *'' Editha'' *'' Hemidula'' *'' Microbembex'' *'' Rubrica'' *'' Selman'' *'' Stictia'' *'' Trichostictia'' *''

Zyzzyx ''Zyzzyx'' is a monospecific genus of sand wasp, containing a brightly coloured, medium-sized species, ''Zyzzyx chilensis''. It is primarily a predator on flies Flies are insects of the Order (biology), order Diptera, the name being de ...

Subtribe Gorytina

*'' Afrogorytes'' *'' Allogorytes'' *'' Arigorytes'' *'' Aroliagorytes'' *'' Austrogortyes'' *'' Eogorytes'' *'' Epigorytes'' *'' Gorytes'' *'' Hapalomellinus'' *'' Harpactostigma'' *'' Harpactus'' *'' Hoplisoides'' *'' Lestiphorus'' *'' Leurogorytes'' *'' Liogorytes'' *'' Megistommum'' *'' Oryttus'' *'' Psammaecius'' *'' Psammaletes'' *''

Sagenista Sagenista is a group of heterokonts containing the labyrinthulids and Eogyrea, a class of yet uncultured protists. Originally, it contained the Labyrinthulids and bicosoecids. The bicosoecids have been removed, and Eogyrea were added, in ord ...

'' *'' Saygorytes'' *'' Stenogorytes'' *'' Stethogorytes'' *'' Tretogorytes'' *'' Trichogorytes'' *'' Xerogorytes''