Toltec Scoliid Wasp

Dielis tolteca · Order: Hymenoptera · Family: Scoliidae

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Toltec Scoliid Wasp
Photo: Ken-ichi Ueda, CC BY

They are often seen on goldenrod (Solidago) plants and are native to the southwestern U.S., Mexico, and also occur in Haiti.

Source: Wikipedia

How to recognize it

Females have extensive orange on at least three abdominal tergites, while the first segment can range from a full band to none.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it comes from

Their main range is the southwestern United States and Mexico, with additional records from Haiti.

Source: Wikipedia

Lookalikes

The similar species D. dorsata has orange only on the second and third abdominal tergites, unlike D. tolteca.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it is found in the US

Recorded in 7 of 51 states and DC. Most records: California, Texas, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Nevada.

Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.

Source: GBIF

Status: native in North America; native in United States. Source: iNaturalist

Months it is reported in the US

JFMAMJJASOND

Source: GBIF

More photos

Toltec Scoliid Wasp photo 3
Photo: John Rosford, CC BY
Toltec Scoliid Wasp photo 4
Photo: unknown, CC0
Toltec Scoliid Wasp photo 5
Photo: Kylie Etter, CC BY
Toltec Scoliid Wasp photo 6
Photo: Alina Martin, CC BY

Same family (Scoliidae)

Blue-winged Scoliid WaspBlue-winged Scoliid WaspScolia dubiaScolia hirtaScolia hirtaScolia hirtaFeather-legged Scoliid WaspFeather-legged Scoliid WaspDielis plumipesDouble-banded Scoliid WaspDouble-banded Scoliid WaspScolia bicinctaDasyscolia ciliataDasyscolia ciliataDasyscolia ciliata

Sources

  • Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dielis_tolteca

Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia

Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.

How this page works

This is one bug's fact sheet. The colored box at the top says whether it is dangerous. Sections below cover how to recognize it, whether it is a pest, and how to deal with it. The US map shows which states have records; tap a state to see other bugs there.

Every fact on Bug FAQ comes from a named source (university extension sites, government agencies, GBIF, iNaturalist, Wikipedia). The source is linked next to each section. If we have no source for something, we leave it out.