Crabro peltarius (Schreber,1784)
Synonyms
Crabro dentipes PANZER, 1797; Crabro patellarius PANZER, 1797; Crabro mediatus FABRICIUS, 1798
Distribution
Locally common to abundant throughout much of Britain and Ireland.
Status (in Britain only)
This species is not regarded as being threatened.
Habitat
Mainly associated with light, sandy soils.
Flight period
Apparently single-brooded; late May to mid-August.
Prey collected
Prey consist of paralysed Diptera of the families Therevidae, Stratiomyidae and the superfamily Muscoidea (Richards, 1980).
Nesting biology
The nest burrows are about 28 cm in length and are excavated in the soil. A nest consists of up to seven cells, each being provisioned with about nine flies (Lomholdt, 1976).
Flowers visited
The species visits wild parsnip, hogweed and wild carrot, also creeping thistle.
Year profile last updated
1997