Tarantula vs giant wasp in fight caught on camera

A battle between a large tarantula and a giant wasp has been caught on camera.

And the outcome of the fight in Arizona might surprise you, until you find out the name of the wasp: Tarantula Hawk.

Yep, that's right, tarantulas might be able to eat small birds, but they often fall prey to the Tarantula Hawk.

According to the Daily Mail, a female Tarantula Hawk seeks out its prey through its smell, before heading into its burrow to force the spider out.

A battle then begins in which the wasp will try to sting the spider after flipping it onto its back.

The IFL Science reports that the female's sting is described as one of the most severe out of any insect, adding "for about three minutes, the victim (even a human) completely loses the mental capacity for any other action other than reacting to the pain".

The tarantula then becomes paralysed, before it's dragged back to the wasp's burrow, where the wasp lays an egg in its abdomen.

When the egg hatches, the larva is able to feast on the spider. Gruesome stuff.

Want to know a bit more? According to Wikipedia: "A tarantula hawk is a spider wasp which hunts tarantulas as food for its larvae.

"The more familiar species are up to 5cm (2in) long, with blue-black bodies and bright, rust-coloured wings (other species have black wings with blue highlights), making them among the largest of wasps.

"Their long legs have hooked claws for grappling with their victims. The stinger of a female Tarantula Hawk can be up to 7mm (1/3in) long, and the sting is considered the second most painful insect sting in the world."