| Belonogaster juncea | |
|---|---|
 | |
| B. j. colonialis, male | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Vespidae |
| Subfamily: | Polistinae |
| Tribe: | Ropalidiini |
| Genus: | Belonogaster |
| Species: | B. juncea |
| Binomial name | |
| Belonogaster juncea (Fabricius, 1781) | |
| Subspecies | |
| |
Belonogaster juncea is a typical quasisocial paper wasp from sub-saharan Africa and south-western Asia. It is the type species for the genus Belonogaster .
The nest is similar in form to that of the Polistes paper wasp's nest and is started in a similar way. However, as B. juncea is quasisocial no foundress wasp becomes a dominant queen and all foundresses are full egg-layers, as are any daughters which can mate with males and then join the nest working and laying alongside their mothers. [1] In Cameroon, B. juncea juncea mostly nests in buildings, but nests nave been constructed in the shelter of large boulders. Nests were started throughout the year either by a single female or by groups of two to eight females. Predation and disease meant that only half of the colonies in one study produced at least one adult offspring, and only 10% were able to produce males from the 15% that managed to rear any sexual individuals.
When the original foundress disappears the remaining females fight for dominance, leading to a reduction in breeding success. Almost half of the surviving nests are then abandoned and the average colony lasts about seven months. In a small minority of nests, some females remained on the nest and began a new colonial cycle illustrating semi-independence between colony and nesting cycles. The maximum number of successive cycles to be completed in the same nest was four. The queens of B. juncea therefore demonstrate serial polygyny. [2]
Studies of B. juncea have discerned four behavioural roles for individual adult wasps in a colony. Reproduction is reserved to one individual and the "workers"’ are divided into foragers, builders and guards. The foragers are females that spend the majority of their time foraging to supply the nest with prey and water. Builders are individuals that will bring wood pulp to the nest and then use it to repair or expand the nest. Guards are those females that spend most of their time being inactive on the nest to defend it and its contents from threats. [3]
It ranges through most of Africa south of the Sahara, from Senegal in the west to Ethiopia in East Africa and south to South Africa, including the island of Zanzibar. [4] It also occurs in Asia as far east as India. [5]
There are two subspecies described. [4]
Ropalidia marginata is an Old World species of paper wasp. It is primitively eusocial, not showing the same bias in brood care seen in other social insects with greater asymmetry in relatedness. The species employees a variety of colony founding strategies, sometimes with single founders and sometimes in groups of variable number. The queen does not use physical dominance to control workers; there is evidence of pheromones being used to suppress other female workers from overtaking queenship.
Vespula pensylvanica, the western yellowjacket, is a Nearctic species of wasp in the genus Vespula. It is native to regions of North America, largely in areas with northern temperate climates. Its reproductive behavior is constrained by cold weather, which successfully reduces the number of western yellowjackets in cold months. However, in the absence of cold weather, this wasp's population can explode. The western yellowjacket has become particularly invasive in the Hawaiian Islands, resulting in their label as a major pest.
Polistes chinensis is a polistine vespid wasp in the cosmopolitan genus Polistes, and is commonly known as the Asian, Chinese or Japanese paper wasp. It is found in East Asia, in particular China and Japan. The subspecies P. chinensis antennalis is an invasive species in New Zealand, having arrived in 1979.
Polistes annularis is a species of paper wasp found throughout the eastern half of the United States. This species of red paper wasp is known for its large size and its red-and-black coloration and is variably referred to as a ringed paper wasp or jack Spaniard wasp. It builds its nest under overhangs near bodies of water that minimize the amount of sunlight penetration. It clusters its nests together in large aggregations, and consumes nectar and other insects. Its principal predator is the ant, although birds are also known to prey on it. Unlike other wasps, P. annularis is relatively robust in winter conditions, and has also been observed to store honey in advance of hibernation. This species has also been used as a model species to demonstrate the ability to use microsatellite markers in maternity assignment of social insects.
Polistes metricus is a wasp native to North America. In the United States, it ranges throughout the southern Midwest, the South, and as far northeast as New York, but has recently been spotted in southwest Ontario. A single female specimen has also been reported from Dryden, Maine. Polistes metricus is dark colored, with yellow tarsi and black tibia. Nests of Polistes metricus can be found attached to the sides of buildings, trees, and shrubbery.
Belonogaster is a large genus of mainly Afrotropical quasisocial wasps, although some species occur in Arabia and two extend as far as India. They have characteristics of both the eusocial and the solitary wasps. Belonogaster constructs communal paper nests where the grubs are fed on masticated, soft-bodied insects such as caterpillars. The type species is Belonogaster juncea, which consists of two subspecies: Belonogaster juncea colonialis and Belonogaster juncea juncea. Belanogaster wasps are an important food source for wintering European honey buzzards in sub-Saharan Africa. In African traditional medicine, wasps of the genus are cooked with plant roots and consumed to cure various childhood sicknesses, as well as having ceremonial use similar to that of honey bees. Some birds choose to build their nests near the nests of Belonogaster for protection, including mousebirds and weavers.
The Central American paper wasp is a nocturnal eusocial wasp. It is famous for its swarm based emigration behavior, and is native to the lowlands of Central and northern South America. This species has developed special night vision adaptations to facilitate their night-time swarming and foraging behavior and has important medicinal properties for the Pankararú people of Brazil.
Belonogaster juncea juncea is a subspecies of Belonogaster juncea and is classified as a primitively eusocial wasp, meaning that the species is social while exhibiting a morphology that is indistinguishable from that of other castes. It is also classified as a type of African Paper Wasp. Many of the studies relating specifically to B. j. juncea take place at the University of Yaoundé in Cameroon.
Polistes instabilis, a type of paper wasp, is a neotropical, eusocial wasp that can be found in tropical and subtropical areas such as Central America and South America. It can be easily identified with its characteristic yellow, brown, and reddish markings, and it builds nests made from chewing plant fibers and making them into paper.
Ropalidia fasciata, a common paper wasp, is a wide-ranging species that is distributed from India to the Lesser Sunda Islands, Palawan, and Ryukyu Islands, occupying the northern edge of Ropalidia's larger distribution. These primitively eusocial wasps are unique in that they do not exhibit the strict matrifilial, single-queen social structure found in many species of social insects. Instead, colonies are founded based on associations between several females, or 'foundresses'.
Polistes nimpha is a eusocial paper wasp found all over Europe, with particular sightings in Turkey, Finland, Estonia, and Latvia. It is also found in northern Africa, Pakistan, Iran, India, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and China. The climate in these areas is relatively cold and snowy in the winter, while summers are usually hot and dry, with steppe vegetation. Polistes nimpha colonies are relatively small and easily manipulated.
Liostenogaster flavolineata is an insect that belongs to the wasp family Vespidae. This hairy-faced hover wasp species is predominantly found in South Asian rain forests, especially in Malaysia. Individual colonies of this species are very small, but aggregations of nests allow for interactions between many smaller colonies. Some worker wasps, known as "helpers", will move between multiple nests in an attempt to improve their position in the dominance hierarchy. Its nests are pale-colored and are usually built with mud. Liostenogaster flavolineata is one of the most studied species in the Stenogastrinae.
Agelaia pallipes is a species of social paper wasp found from Costa Rica to Argentina and Paraguay. A. pallipes is ground-nesting and is one of the most aggressive wasps in South America. This species is a predator of other insects, including flies, moths, and ground crickets, as well as baby birds.
Belonogaster petiolata is a species of primitively eusocial wasp that dwells in southern Africa, in temperate or subhumid climate zones. This wasp species has a strong presence in South Africa and has also been seen in northern Johannesburg. Many colonies can be found in caves. The Sterkfontein Caves in South Africa, for example, contain large populations of B. petiolata.
Ropalidia revolutionalis Ropalidia revolutionalis, the small brown paper wasp, is a diurnal social wasp of the family Vespidae. They are known for the distinctive combs they make for their nests, and they are mostly found in Queensland, Australia in the areas of Brisbane and Townsville. They are an independent founding wasp species, and they build new nests each spring. They can be helpful because they control insect pests in gardens. However, if threatened, they will sting humans and cause large amounts of pain.
Ropalidia plebeiana is a eusocial temperate paper wasp. It is unique, as it is the only temperate wasp in the typically tropical Ropalidia genus. R. plebeiana is widely distributed in eastern Australia, and recently have been found making huge nest aggregations, with thousands of nests on trunks of trees, in south-eastern New South Wales.
The Black hover wasp, Parischnogaster alternata, is a eusocial wasp in the genus Parischnogaster. It is native to South-East Asia, and builds its nests in cavities located in dark and damp locations. The nests of Black hover wasps are often found in clusters, which serves as a passive defense mechanism against predators. The annual colony cycle begins with nest initiation by a single foundress though colonies typically consist of 2-3 associative females and helpers that aid in brood development, nest construction, and colony defense. Indicative of the name, female P. alternata are known to strategically hover near nests when visiting other colonies before landing. These intrusions produce responses ranging from aerial fighting to cooperative food sharing.
Polistes japonicus is a eusocial paper wasp found in Japan. It was first described by Henri Louis Frédéric de Saussure in 1858. It is closely related to Polistes formosanus. This species lives in small colonies with few workers and a foundress queen. Nests of these wasps are sometimes used as a traditional medicine in Korea, China, and Japan.
Polistes versicolor is a subtropical social wasp within Polistes, the most common genus of paper wasp. The most widely distributed South American wasp species, P. versicolor is particularly common in the Southeastern Brazilian states. This social wasp is commonly referred to as the yellow paper wasp due to the distinct yellow bands found on its thorax and abdomen. The P. versicolor nest, made of chewed vegetable fiber, is typically a single, uncovered comb attached to the substratum by a single petiole. The yellow wasp is frequently found in urban areas. New nests and colonies are usually founded by an association of females, sometimes in human buildings. The P. versicolor colony cycle broadly ranges from 3 to 10 months, although there appears to be no relationship between the colony's development and the season of the year. While yellow paper wasps do have clear annual colony cycles, many young queens have the opportunity to hibernate during the winter, forming optional winter aggregations. Dominance hierarchies within these aggregations are characterized by physical aggression of the dominant female(s) towards the associated females, who tend to be sisters. Wagging movements are also often used as a form of communication within the colony. The yellow paper wasp is generally predatory, capturing a wide range of insects, although it often feeds on pollen and nectar as well. Therefore, P. versicolor can be useful as a pollinator or as effective pest control.
Mischocyttarus mexicanus is a New World paper wasp that exhibits facultative eusocial behavior and includes at least two subspecies living in the southern United States and Central America. This social wasp species is a good model for studying the selective advantage of different nesting tactics within a single species. M. mexicanus females can form nests both as individuals and as members of a colony, and are even known to switch between these two nesting strategies throughout their life, which is an unusual phenomenon in the field of social biology. Individuals in a colony have particular social roles that are plastic, as opposed to rigid castes, and brood parasitism and usurpation have been observed between unrelated conspecifics. They nest in a variety of types of plants and human constructions, although they have most frequently been observed in palm trees, and they are known to interact with a number of other species as prey, competitors over resources, or foragers.
Media related to Belonogaster juncea at Wikimedia Commons