But there is no contrasting color between the head and thorax and the stripes are jagged on the western cicada killer. What do cicada killer wasps like to eat? After 17-years of living below ground, billions of cicadas belonging to Brood X will soon emerge across much of the eastern United States. Eastern cicada killer wasps are large and powerful — up to 2 inches — about the size of a cicada, but the cicada has a wider body. There are several other species occurring throughout the United States, including the Pacific, western and Caribbean cicada killers. The eastern cicada killer tends to be black and yellow. chiptape Getty Images As the name suggests, “these wasps prey on cicadas,” explains Ben Hottel, Ph.D., technical services manager at Orkin , LLC. The eastern cicada killer wasp, Sphecius speciosus, is a large, solitary digger wasp that typically appears in Louisiana mid to late July.It is a beneficial insect that is a predator of cicadas, which it stings and stuns to store in her burrow to feed her larvae. This species of wasp occurs in the eastern and midwestern states of North America and southward into Central America. The male wasp does not have a stinger, only a sharp spine to jab with. They are one of the largest wasp species in North America and range in size from 1 1/8” to 2” long. The female cicada killer wasp can sting humans but usually this only happens by accident; if trodden on or stuck in clothes or shoes by accident, the wasp may sting in self defense. Their coloration is similar to that of yellowjackets or other wasps or hornets. Eastern cicada killer wasps are big and mean-looking, but pretty much harmless, unlike their invasive kin, known as the "murder hornets" from Asia. For an article outlining the cicada killer life cycle in more detail, Davis explained to Newsweek some non-lethal steps people can take if cicada killers … Cicada killer wasps are not aggressive toward human beings and prefer to retreat than attack. “Eastern cicada killers (Sphecius speciosus) are the large wasps which dig burrows each summer in well-drained lawns, playing fields, plant nurseries and sloping terrain with varying amounts of grass east of the Rocky Mountains in the US and south into Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras. Female cicada killer wasps have large stingers, and their … The western cicada killer is closer in color to the Asian giant hornet, being reddish brown and yellow. The cicadas will carry on for a few weeks of their four to six-week lifespan. Eastern cicada killers (Specius speciosus) are large, solitary wasps belonging to the family Sphecidae. Cicada killer wasps are hairy, reddish and black insects and can be as big as 2 inches long. 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