Many (>200 species + subspecies[1]) Ammophila is the type genus of the subfamily Ammophilinae of the hunting wasp family Sphecidae.

Ammophila is a large and cosmopolitan genus, with over 200 species, mostly occurring in the warmer regions of all continents apart from Antarctica.

However, this common name is used primarily for wasps in the family Crabronidae, in the tribe Bembicini.

As is frequent in large genera, considerable variation occurs in their habits and appearance, but predominantly they are medium-sized wasps of strikingly slender build, with antennae about as long as the head plus thorax.

The jaws are not large, but are strong and apart from feeding and digging, often are used for unexpected functions such as holding a pebble with which the wasp hammers down soil to seal a nest,[2] or to grip the stem of a plant at night, holding its body at right-angles to the stem, its legs folded and all the weight taken up by the mandibles.