~200 species; see text Dasymutilla is a wasp genus belonging to the family Mutillidae.

Most of the velvet ants in North America—the wingless females of which are conspicuous as colorful, fast, and "fuzzy" bugs—are in the genus Dasymutilla.

[2] On the Starr sting pain scale, at least one velvet ant species (Dasymutilla klugii) outscored 58 species of wasps and bees in the painfulness of its sting, falling short of only the bullet ant (Paraponera clavata), the warrior wasp (Synoeca septentrionalis), and the tarantula hawk (genus Pepsis).

[4][5] Aside from their aposematic coloration, they can produce a loud squeaking noise which also warns potential predators.

Their exoskeleton is remarkably strong; experiments concluded that 11 times more force was needed to crush the exoskeleton of a female velvet ant than that of a honey bee.