Hymenoepimecis argyraphaga is a Costa Rican parasitoid wasp whose host is the spider Plesiometa argyra. The wasp is unusual in modifying the spider's web building behavior to make a web made of very strong lines designed to support the wasp's cocoon without breaking in the rain. Habitat Hymenoepimecis argyraphaga is indigenous to Costa Rica. Its ideal habitat would include good sources of food, mating sites, and a stable population of their host spider. This parasitic wasp feeds on sugar and nectar and tends to be near heavy vegetation. The wasp prefers heavy vegetation because this provides both a good mating site as the wasps mate on tips of leaves and protection during development. Heavy vegetation provides thick undergrowth where the spider can spin their webs providing protection from heavy rains and winds. Reproduction Hymenoepimecis argyraphaga wasps have a haplodiploid genetic system, meaning unfertilized eggs will become males and fertilized eggs will become females. Wasp reproduction ratios can change based on seasonal changes and environmental stress. Depending on these factors, the egg will either be fertilized or be unfertilized. Males seek out females for reproduction, but seem to fly in random patterns above the undergrowth. They encounter females after they emerge from their cocoons and leave the underbrush. While the males seem to fly in random patterns, they locate the females within minutes, suggesting a long range pheromone. The male will land on the female and copulate which takes roughly 10 seconds. There has been no observed aggression between wasps when reproducing. Development After copulation, the female wasp must find a host for her egg. First she must immobilize the host using venom from her ovipositor. This can be done in two different ways, she could either use a method of attack or a deceiving method. For the method of attack, the wasp would hover over its host until it had an opening to swing down and capture it by threading its legs through the web to tightly pin down the host. It would then jab the host repeatedly with the ovipositor, while injecting the host with venom. For the deceiving method, the wasp would act as if it was caught in the spiders web and lay still on its back. When the spider approaches, the wasp will grab onto the host and sting repeatedly until the spider stops struggling so the wasp can insert the ovipositor into the spider's cephalothorax