 Stings of this species received a lethality rating of 46 LC measured by LC= (LC="lethal capacity", μg="venom in the insect", LD50=" of the venom", g="size of mammal receiving the dose" and LD="lethal dose").Western cicada killers are found at a higher altitude than most other "Sphecius" species and are sympatric with the species "S. convallis" and "S. speciosus", even though "S. grandis" are on average found at higher altitudes than "S. convallis".A study showed that the mean elevation for "S. grandis" was 755 m ± 23.3 m, compared with the lower results of "S. speciosus" (219 m ± 4.7 m), "S. convallis" (582 m ± 30.9 m) and "S. hogardii" (18 m ± 5 m).