DOCSLIB.ORG

Two Most-Common Yellowjacket Wasps in Wyoming Differ In

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

TWO MOST-COMMON YELLOWJACKET WASPS IN WYOMING DIFFER IN Aerial yellowjacket more mellow, western yellowjacket just plain grouchy Scott Schell he bold, contrasting color patterns on yellowjacket Twasps act as a warning to potential predators they pack a potent sting. The 11 species of yellowjacket wasps (subfamily Vespinae, in the order Hymenoptera) in Wyoming all ex- hibit this warning, or more accurately, aposematic color pattern. Unlike honey bee workers, which can only sting once at the cost of their lives with barbed stingers, yel- lowjacket females can sting repeatedly with their smooth stingers. Yellowjackets will do so readily if physically as- saulted or in defense of their nests. Their color pattern is so effective at deterring preda- tors that defenseless insect species, such as the flower fly species (order Diptera, family Syrphidae) have evolved color patterns that closely mimic yellowjackets for pro- tection. Like honey bees, yellowjackets are an eusocial insect, which means related individuals work coopera- tively to produce the next generation. Yellowjackets, and their close relatives the paper wasps (subfamily Polistinae), use the original version of papier-mâché to construct their nests. The “paper” these wasps make consists of fibers they chew off plant stems and weathered wood mixed with their sticky saliva. The design and placement nests vary by species. As with many other insect pest species, proper iden- tification of the perpetrator and a working knowledge of Aerial Yellowjacket their life cycles can help you implement the best control methods. FALL 2017 7 Western and Aerial Yellowjackets The two most common species of yellowjackets in Wyoming towns have different nesting preferences. The western yellowjacket (Vespula pensylvanica) prefers to nest under- ground, frequently taking over and enlarging abandoned rodent bur- rows as their nests get bigger (Photo 1). They will also readily use crawl spaces and cavities in or under hu- man structures. Aerial yellowjackets Photo 1. The entrance to an underground yellowjacket nest by a brick wall (Dolichovespula arenaria) prefer the shows the soil removed by worker wasps as they excavate the cavity to expand shelter of overhangs such as the the paper nest. eaves of houses or under the branch- es of trees for their paper-covered nests (Photo 2). Knowing the life cycles of these yellowjacket species is a key to their control if they become pests. The life cycle of both is very similar. A new queen emerges from her natal nest in the late summer and mates with a male yellowjacket (males are produced in the summer for the sole purpose of mating with the new queens and then they die off). This of- ten occurs at congregations of wasps on hilltops within sight of the nests. Photo 2. The overhangs on buildings make great nest sites for aerial During mating, a new queen is able to yellowjackets. Their nest construction differs from the yellow and black store all the sperm she needs for the European paper wasp by having a cover of paper over the larval cells. rest her life. She will then forage for food through late summer and seek a of daughters and a paper cover to dies while doing this, they all die. protected place to spend the winter protect them with a single entrance When the yellowjacket larvae are fully alone. Locations such as under loose at the bottom. A single fertilized egg grown, the queen caps the larva’s cell bark on dead trees, in firewood piles, is put in each cell. The sex of her with paper. They pupate and undergo and in building attics are often used offspring is determined by the queen. metamorphosis into the adult winged as a hibernation refuge. If she releases some of the stored form. When these first daughters If a queen chooses her winter sperm, it fertilizes the egg and the emerge, they take over the work of quarters well and survives, she be- egg will develop into a female wasp. defending and expanding the nest, comes active again when the weather Unfertilized eggs, with only the genes foraging for food, and caring for the warms the following spring. The from their mother, develop into male subsequent offspring of their mother. young queen will forage for food and wasps. This ability to control the gen- The adult daughters are inhibited search for a suitable place to build der of offspring genetically is called from producing their own eggs by her nest and start her own colony. haplodiploidy. a pheromone scent emitted by the The new nest starts small and After the first eggs hatch, the queen. consists of a single tier of hexagonal queen has to forage to feed these paper cells for rearing the initial brood first few daughters herself. If she 8 BARNYARDS & BACKYARDS Their Habits nest. However, all yellowjacket spe- Aerial yellowjacket nests are cies only travel as far as needed to the most frequently noticed kind in find food. Wyoming, with their penchant for Unwelcome Outdoor Visitor putting gray-colored, paper-covered The western yellowjacket is also nests under the eaves of buildings. the species that most frequently in- None of the yellowjacket species terrupts outdoor dining at picnics and reuse a nest from the previous year, was found to inflict 9 out of 10 insect but a good location may attract a new stings people suffer according to a nest every year. Photo 3. The pattern of black markings study conducted in Colorado. Despite Aerial yellowjackets are primarily on the head and top of the abdomen being a predator on some insects predators of other insects and prefer differs between species of yellowjack- considered garden plant pests, the prey such as caterpillars. The prey are ets. This drawing illustrates the typical negatives of western yellowjackets, chewed into a “baby food” consisten- markings on a worker western yel- such as attacks on honey bee hives, cy and fed to the developing larvae. lowjacket. From “The Yellowjackets of feeding on ripening fruits in orchards Western yellowjackets are fre- and gardens, scavenging at picnics quent scavengers of meat from road- America North of Mexico.” due to their attraction to people food, killed animals. They also like to forage Because the aerial yellowjacket and drinking from both fermented in uncovered human garbage and so closely resembles the more pes- and sweet beverage containers, can chew the remains of dead insects tiferous ground-dwelling western outweigh their benefits. off the front of cars. They can also yellowjacket, probably more cans of They readily sting in defense of be beneficial as opportunistic preda- “wasp” spray is expended on their their underground nest entrances. tors of plant-feeding insects. Western exposed nests than any other spe- These behaviors make the species yellowjacket adults will also feed on cies in Wyoming. This usually doesn’t deserving of control around homes sweets, such as ripening fruit, for solve people’s problems with yel- and farms. energy. All yellowjacket colonies, if lowjackets. Western yellowjackets The best way to reduce western successful, continue to expand with are much more likely to be the pest yellowjacket populations around a more workers being produced until in your yard. One study found that home is to start trapping early in the the queen starts to produce the next worker western yellowjackets would spring to catch the new queens and/or generation of queens and the males forage as far as 1,100 feet from their the first daughters to eliminate or stunt to mate with them. new colonies. Commercial traps baited In studies conducted in with heptyl butyrate, which smells like Washington State, the populations of rotting fruit, are very effective against worker yellowjackets per nest varied the western yellowjacket. Other bait widely with species and the year’s The USDA Agriculture ingredients may enhance the trap particular environmental conditions, Handbook Number 552 catches, but heptyl butyrate used alone especially the early spring weather. “The Yellowjackets of is very effective for catching western Western yellowjacket colonies were yellowjackets. found to have anywhere from 900 to America North of Mexico” Later in the spring and summer, almost 4,000 workers by late summer is a comprehensive trea- refresh the bait and move the traps to in areas with lots of food resources. tise on these fascinating the outer edge of your yard to inter- Aerial yellowjacket colonies were insects and is available for cept foraging western yellowjackets similar in size. After the production of coming from nests from beyond your males and new queens, nest expan- download at yard. The pattern of black on yellow sion ceases and the first hard frost is bit.ly/wyoyellowjackets on the head and abdomen can be the end of life for the old queen and used to distinguish the western yel- her worker daughters. lowjacket (Photo 3). University of Wyoming Extension assistant entomologist Scott Schell risks life and limb (we’re exaggerating a LITTLE) to bring useful insect information to Cowboy State residents. He can be reached at (307) 766-2508 or at [email protected]. FALL 2017 9 .
Recommended publications
  • Yellowjackets Web Brochure

    Yellowjackets Web Brochure

    YELLOWJACKETS OF NAPA COUNTY NAPA COUNTY MOSQUITO ABATEMENT DISTRICT P.O. Box 10053 American Canyon, CA 94503 Phone (707) 553-9610 Fax (707) 553-9611 Website: napamosquito.org GENERAL INFORMATION Yellowjackets, commonly referred to as meat bees, are social wasps that live in colonies. They are often confused with bees. They are a more aggressive threat than bees. They do not have barbs on their stingers so they can sting more than once. They can also bite. In Napa County there are three aggressive pest species of yellowjackets. They are the Common yellowjacket (Vespula vulgaris), Western yellowjacket (Vespula pensylvanica), and the German yellowjacket (Vespula germanica). These species build their nests in underground holes, attics, and walls of homes. They can also build nests in rodent burrows, tree cavities or ground holes. When a nest is disturbed yellowjackets can inflict multiple stings that are painful and may be life threatening to individuals hypersensitive to the venom. Unlike honeybees, yellowjackets do not leave a stinger imbedded in the sting site therefore they can sting numerous times. Stinging and injured yellowjackets release a chemical alarm pheromone that attracts other worker yellowjackets. This can cause additional yellowjackets to attack. In the late summer months when yellowjacket populations increase they can create a nuisance in parks by scavenging for food from picnic and barbeque areas. They can cause structural damage to a home when they construct nests in walls or attics. Adults of some species are beneficial to man because they prey on flies and other insects. Yellowjackets use vegetable fibers from trees and shrubs, chewed and mixed with saliva, to produce a paper-like material for nest construction.
  • Scientific Notes 193 APPLICATION of ALARM PHEROMONE TO

    Scientific Notes 193 APPLICATION of ALARM PHEROMONE TO

    Scientific Notes 193 APPLICATION OF ALARM PHEROMONE TO TARGETS BY SOUTHERN YELLOWJACKETS (HYMENOPTERA: VESPIDAE) HAL C. REED1 AND PETER J. LANDOLT USDA, ARS, 5230 Konnowac Pass Rd., Wapato, WA 98951, USA 1Current address: Department of Biology, Oral Roberts University, Tulsa, OK 74171 Alarm pheromones have been demonstrated for a number of species of social Vesp- idae including several hornets and yellowjackets (Vespines) (Landolt et al. 1997). Maschwitz (1964a, b) first demonstrated alarm pheromone responses in the yellow- jackets Vespula vulgaris L. and V. germanica (Fab.) in response to crushed wasps and body parts. Pheromone-mediated alarm has since been observed in other vespines: Dolichovespula saxonica (Fab.) (Maschwitz 1984), the southern yellowjacket V. squa- mosa (Drury) (Landolt & Heath 1987, Landolt et al. 1999), the eastern yellowjacket V. maculifrons (Buysson) (Landolt et al. 1995), Provespa anomala Saussure (Maschwitz & Hanel 1988), and Vespa crabro L. (Veith et al. 1984). 2-Methyl-3- butene-2-ol was identified as a component of the alarm pheromone of V. crabro (Veith et al. 1984), and N-3- methylbutylacetamide was isolated and identified as an alarm pheromone of the southern and eastern yellowjackets (Heath & Landolt 1988, Landolt et al. 1995). The source of alarm pheromones in social wasps generally is the venom, although the head is implicated as an additional source of alarm pheromone for V. vulgaris (Al- diss 1983) and V. squamosa (Landolt et al. 1999). Alarm behavior in V. germanica and V. vulgaris occurred in response to the squashed sting apparatus, sting sac, and sol- vent extract of the sting sac (Maschwitz 1964b) and in D.
  • Arborists and Stinging Insects in the Landscape: a Potentially Painful Encounter by Rick W

    Arborists and Stinging Insects in the Landscape: a Potentially Painful Encounter by Rick W

    SEPTEMBER 2015 N O . 1 8 2 Arborists and Stinging Insects in the Landscape: A Potentially Painful Encounter By Rick W. Harper and As arborists and urban for- early part of the season Jody Gangloff-Kaufmann esters we are well familiar and much easier to spot with Integrated Pest Management (IPM) as a sustainable, in late summer when inclusive approach to managing pests that require inter- populations peak. To vention strategies. It is important to keep in mind that quickly detect a stinging the benefits from the stinging insect community are nu- insect nest, scout the merous and include pollination (30% of food crops and perimeter of a structure 90% of wild plants require the pollination services of by slowly walking along bees (1)) and predation. On occasion, however, stinging and observing insect ac- insects may necessitate an intervention – especially if Honeybee swarm tivity. Look at the roof- they are frequenting high-use areas like our community (Timothy Haley, USDA line and eaves of the parks, urban trees and landscapes. When we put into Forest Service, Bugwood.org) structure with the sky as context that conflicts with stinging insects accounted for a backdrop; scout the more than “79 fatalities per year” in the U.S., and com- foundation of buildings and base of trees for activity. Pay prised “28.2% of the total animal-related fatalities from particular attention to dense brush, compost piles, 1999 to 2007 (2),” it becomes evident that a sting may boards on the ground, railroad ties that may be used as indeed be a serious occurrence.
  • General Pest Management: a Guide for Commercial Applicators, Category 7A, and Return It to the Pesticide Education Program Office, Michigan State University Extension

    General Pest Management: a Guide for Commercial Applicators, Category 7A, and Return It to the Pesticide Education Program Office, Michigan State University Extension

    General Pest Management A Guide for Commercial Applicators Extension Bulletin E -2048 • October 1998, Major revision-destroy old stock • Michigan State University Extension General Pest Management A Guide for Commercial Applicators Category 7A Editor: Carolyn Randall Extension Associate Pesticide Education Program Michigan State University Technical Consultants: Melvin Poplar, Program Manager John Haslem Insect and Rodent Management Pest Management Supervisor Michigan Department of Agriculture Michigan State University Adapted from Urban Integrated Pest Management, A Guide for Commercial Applicators, written by Dr. Eugene Wood, Dept. of Entomology, University of Maryland; and Lawrence Pinto, Pinto & Associates; edited by Jann Cox, DUAL & Associates, Inc. Prepared for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Certification and Training Branch by DUAL & Associates, Arlington, Va., February 1991. General Pest Management i Preface Acknowledgements We acknowledge the main source of information for Natural History Survey for the picture of a mole (Figure this manual, the EPA manual Urban Integrated Pest 19.8). Management, from which most of the information on structure-infesting and invading pests, and vertebrates We acknowledge numerous reviewers of the manu- was taken. script including Mark Sheperdigian of Rose Exterminator Co., Bob England of Terminix, Jerry Hatch of Eradico We also acknowledge the technical assistance of Mel Services Inc., David Laughlin of Aardvark Pest Control, Poplar, Program Manager for the Michigan Department Ted Bruesch of LiphaTech, Val Smitter of Smitter Pest of Agriculture’s (MDA) Insect and Rodent Management Control, Dan Lyden of Eradico Services Inc., Tim Regal of and John Haslem, Pest Management Supervisor at Orkin Exterminators, Kevin Clark of Clarks Critter Michigan State University.
  • Yellowjackets and Hornets, Vespula and Dolichovespula Spp. (Insecta: Hymenoptera: Vespidae)1 E

    Yellowjackets and Hornets, Vespula and Dolichovespula Spp. (Insecta: Hymenoptera: Vespidae)1 E

    EENY-081 Yellowjackets and Hornets, Vespula and Dolichovespula spp. (Insecta: Hymenoptera: Vespidae)1 E. E. Grissell and Thomas R. Fasulo2 Introduction Distribution Only two of the 18 Nearctic species of Vespula are known Vespula maculifrons is found in eastern North America, from Florida (Miller 1961). These are the two yellowjackets: while Vespula squamosa is found in the eastern United eastern yellowjacket, V. maculifrons (Buysson) and the States and parts of Mexico and Central America. The southern yellowjacket, V. squamosa (Drury). One species baldfaced hornet, Dolichovespula maculata, is found of Dolichovespula is also present: the baldfaced hornet, throughout most of the Nearctic region. D. maculata (Linnaeus). The baldfaced hornet is actually a yellowjacket. It receives its common name of baldfaced Identification from its largely black color but mostly white face, and that The three species of Florida yellowjackets are readily of hornet because of its large size and aerial nest. In general, separated by differences in body color and pattern. Identi- the term “hornet” is used for species which nest above fication is possible without a hand lens or microscope, and, ground and the term “yellowjacket” for those which make for this reason, a simple pictorial key is all that is necessary. subterranean nests. All species are social, living in colonies Color patterns are relatively stable, and their use is further of hundreds to thousands of individuals. strengthened by morphological characters (Miller 1961). Queens and workers may be separated by abdominal pat- terns; males have seven abdominal segments while females have only six. Biology Colonies are founded in the spring by a single queen that mated the previous fall and overwintered as an adult, usually under the bark of a log.
  • The Pest Status of Yellowjackets in Ohio (Hymenoptera: Vespidae)

    The Pest Status of Yellowjackets in Ohio (Hymenoptera: Vespidae)

    The Great Lakes Entomologist Volume 21 Number 2 - Summer 1988 Number 2 - Summer Article 7 1988 June 1988 The Pest Status of Yellowjackets in Ohio (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) Kenneth J. Stein Ohio State Unviersity Dana L. Wrensch Ohio State University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.valpo.edu/tgle Part of the Entomology Commons Recommended Citation Stein, Kenneth J. and Wrensch, Dana L. 1988. "The Pest Status of Yellowjackets in Ohio (Hymenoptera: Vespidae)," The Great Lakes Entomologist, vol 21 (2) Available at: https://scholar.valpo.edu/tgle/vol21/iss2/7 This Peer-Review Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of Biology at ValpoScholar. It has been accepted for inclusion in The Great Lakes Entomologist by an authorized administrator of ValpoScholar. For more information, please contact a ValpoScholar staff member at [email protected]. Stein and Wrensch: The Pest Status of Yellowjackets in Ohio (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) 1988 THE GREAT LAKES ENfOMOLOGIST 83 THE PEST STATUS OF YELLOWJACKETS IN omo (HYMENOPTERA: VESPIDAE) Kenneth J. Stein and Dana L. Wrensch' ABSTRACT Since 1975 in Ohio, there has been an escalation in the number of complaints and inquiries regarding yellowjackets (Vespula and Dolichovespula spp.) to the Ohio pest control operators, the Ohio Cooperative Extension Service (OCES) County Agents and the OCES Entomologists at the Ohio State University. A survey was distributed in May 1985 to both groups in order to determine the pest status of yellowjackets in Ohio. The results of this survey strongly suggest that yelIowjackets in Ohio are largely an "economic pest", with most economic disturbances associated with homeowners, outdoor businesses, and outdoor recreational facilities.
  • Pesticide-Free Solutions to Yellowjacket Problems

    Pesticide-Free Solutions to Yellowjacket Problems

    JOURNAL OF PESTICIDE REFORM/ SUMMER 2006 • VOL. 26, NO. 2 A lternatives to just let them be.5 Seasonal Behavior Most yellowjackets die with the first Pesticide-free Solutions frost in the fall. The nest is abandoned and typically not used again. Only the queens find a protected spot to spend to Yellowjacket Prob­­lems the winter. In the spring, the queens build new nests and begin laying eggs BY CAROLINE COX which hatch into worker wasps. All summer the number of workers in- creases. By the end of summer there It’s hard to like yellowjackets. They can be thousands of yellowjackets in sting, cause violent allergic reactions in a nest. This is typically when the yel- some people, harass picnickers, and lowjackets are most troublesome.3 have a knack for causing trouble at the wrong time. They seem persistent, clev- Preventing Yellow Jacket er, and difficult to manage. This doesn’t Ken Gray/Oregon State Univ. Problems mean, however, that reaching for a If you’re expecting yellowjacket spray can is a good way to deal with problems, there are some simple steps a yellowjacket problem. Pesticide-free you can take to reduce or eliminate techniques are surprisingly effective. them. If you need convincing that pesti- First, don’t provide these scavengers cides aren’t necessary when coping with pesticide.org/ http://www.pesticide. with food or drink. If you have a meal these feisty wasps, consider what hap- org/BeesWaspsControl.pdf. outside, keep the food and drink cov- pened at the Waterfront Park baseball ered as much as possible.
  • The Vespinae of North America (Vespidae, Hymenoptera) 37 Doi: 10.3897/JHR.28.3514 Research Article

    The Vespinae of North America (Vespidae, Hymenoptera) 37 Doi: 10.3897/JHR.28.3514 Research Article

    JHR 28: 37–65 (2012) The Vespinae of North America (Vespidae, Hymenoptera) 37 doi: 10.3897/JHR.28.3514 RESEARCH ARTICLE www.pensoft.net/journals/jhr The Vespinae of North America (Vespidae, Hymenoptera) Lynn S. Kimsey1, James M. Carpenter2 1 Bohart Museum of Entomology, University of California, Davis, California 95616 2 American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York 10024 Corresponding author: Lynn S. Kimsey ([email protected]) Academic editor: Wojciech Pulawski | Received 12 June 2012 | Accepted 30 July 2012 | Published 24 August 2012 Citation: Kimsey LS, Carpenter JM (2012) The Vespinae of North America (Vespidae, Hymenoptera). Journal of Hymenoptera Research 28: 37–65. doi: 10.3897/JHR.28.3514 Abstract The species of paper wasps in the tribe Vespini, family Vespidae from America North of Mexico are re- viewed, including a new identification key to the genera and species, complete synonymy, distribution and biology. This fauna includes six species ofDolichovespula Rohwer, three species of Vespa Linnaeus and 13 species of Vespula Thomson. No Holarctic species are recognized, with the result that Dolichovespula arc- tica (Rohwer) and Vespula intermedia (du Buysson) are again recognized as species, while Vespula infernalis (de Saussure) is given new status as a species. Keywords Vespa, Dolichovespula, Vespula Introduction Vespinae, or the yellow jackets and hornets, are among the most recognizable wasps in North America. All of the species are either social or are social parasites of other congeners. They construct their nests out of a mixture of plant fibers and salivary secre- tions, and the nests can range from baseball-sized, with a few thousand cells, to nests with hundreds of thousands of cells.
  • Yellowjackets Rev 8/01

    Yellowjackets Rev 8/01

    YELLOWJACKETS AND OTHER SOCIAL WASPS Integrated Pest Management in and around the Home Only a few of the very large number of a single queen who overwinters and wasp species in California live a social becomes active when the weather life; these species are referred to as warms. She emerges in late winter/ social wasps. Some social wasps are early spring to feed and start a new predators for most or all of the year nest. From spring to midsummer nests and provide a great benefit by killing are in the growth phase, and the larvae large numbers of plant-feeding insects require large amounts of protein. and nuisance flies; others are exclu- Workers forage mainly for protein at sively scavengers. Wasps become a this time (usually in the form of other problem only when they threaten to insects) and for some sugars. By late sting humans. One of the most trouble- summer, however, the colonies grow some of the social wasps is the yellow- more slowly or cease growth and re- jacket. Yellowjackets, especially quire large amounts of sugar to main- ground- and cavity-nesting ones such tain the queen and workers. So as the western yellowjacket (Fig. 1), foraging wasps are particularly inter- tend to defend their nests vigorously ested in sweet things at this time. when disturbed. Defensive behavior Figure 1. Western yellowjacket. increases as the season progresses and Normally, yellowjacket and paper colony populations become larger wasp colonies only live one season. In while food becomes scarcer. In fall, very mild winters or in coastal Califor- Dolichovespula [=Vespula] maculata) on foraging yellowjackets are primarily nia south of San Francisco, however, the abdomen, and have a very short, scavengers and they start to show up some yellowjacket colonies survive for narrow waist (the area where the tho- at picnics, barbecues, around garbage several years and become quite large.
  • Social Bees and Wasps

    Social Bees and Wasps

    E-44-W Household and Structural Department of Entomology SOCIAL BEES AND WASPS Timothy J. Gibb, Extension Entomologist Controlling bees and wasps in and around buildings, HONEY BEES IN BUILDINGS parks, and campgrounds may be difficult and possibly haz- ardous. Some people are hypersensitive to bee and wasp Honey bees may build colonies in hollow walls, chim- venom, and many others are greatly afraid of these com- neys, and attics of buildings. Here, they may annoy or at mon insects. Most commercial pest control operators are times sting the residents, and their colonies (unlike other equipped to deal with bees and wasps and can provide ser- social bee and wasp colonies) may be a perennial prob- vice when control is warranted. lem. In addition, the wax combs of the nest may melt and Although all female bees and wasps are capable of allow stored honey to seep through walls and ruin interior stinging (males are harmless), only the social species ag- finishes. Abandoned honeycombs can become infested gressively do so in defense of their colonies. Solitary spe- with scavenger insects or may attract rodent pests which cies rarely sting; typically, only if mishandled. Accordingly, it may enter the home and cause additional annoyance. Ac- is important to be able to distinguish social bees (the honey cordingly, removal and/or destruction of honey bee colonies bee, bumble bees) and social wasps (paper wasps, hornets, in structures is advised, but it should be done with special yellowjackets) from their solitary relatives such as carpenter care. bees, cicada killer, mud daubers, etc. (See E-63 “Solitary Honey bee colonies in structures can be destroyed by Bees and Wasps: Carpenter Bee, Cicada Killer and Mud injecting 5% carbaryl (Sevin) dust (Apicide®) into the en- Daubers”).
  • Notes on the Natural History of Juneau, Alaska

    Notes on the Natural History of Juneau, Alaska

    Notes on the Natural History of Juneau, Alaska Observations of an Eclectic Naturalist Volume 2 Animals L. Scott Ranger Working version of Jul. 8, 2020 A Natural History of Juneau, working version of Jul. 8, 2020 Juneau Digital Shaded-Relief Image of Alaska-USGS I-2585, In the Public Domain Natural History of Juneau, working version of Jul. 8, 2020 B Notes on the Natural History of Juneau, Alaska Observations of an Eclectic Naturalist Volume 2: Animals L. Scott Ranger www.scottranger.com, [email protected] Production Notes This is very much a work under construction. My notes are composed in Adobe InDesign which allows incredible precision of all the elements of page layout. My choice of typefaces is very specific. Each must include a complete set of glyphs and extended characters. For my etymologies the font must include an easily recognized Greek and the occasional Cyrillic and Hebrew. All must be legible and easily read at 10 points. Adobe Garamond Premier Pro is my specifically chosen text typeface. I find this Robert Slimbach 1989 revision of a typeface created by Claude Garamond (c. 1480–1561) to be at once fresh and classic. Long recognized as one of the more legible typefaces, I find it very easy on the eye at the 10 point size used here. I simply adore the open bowls of the lower case letters and find the very small counters of my preferred two- storied “a” and the “e” against its very open bowl elegant. Garamond’s ascenders and decenders are especially long and help define the lower case letters with instant recognition.
  • Comparative Morphology of the Stinger in Social Wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespidae)

    Comparative Morphology of the Stinger in Social Wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespidae)

    insects Article Comparative Morphology of the Stinger in Social Wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) Mario Bissessarsingh 1,2 and Christopher K. Starr 1,* 1 Department of Life Sciences, University of the West Indies, St Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago; [email protected] 2 San Fernando East Secondary School, Pleasantville, Trinidad and Tobago * Correspondence: [email protected] Simple Summary: Both solitary and social wasps have a fully functional venom apparatus and can deliver painful stings, which they do in self-defense. However, solitary wasps sting in subduing prey, while social wasps do so in defense of the colony. The structure of the stinger is remarkably uniform across the large family that comprises both solitary and social species. The most notable source of variation is in the number and strength of barbs at the tips of the slender sting lancets that penetrate the wound in stinging. These are more numerous and robust in New World social species with very large colonies, so that in stinging human skin they often cannot be withdrawn, leading to sting autotomy, which is fatal to the wasp. This phenomenon is well-known from honey bees. Abstract: The physical features of the stinger are compared in 51 species of vespid wasps: 4 eumenines and zethines, 2 stenogastrines, 16 independent-founding polistines, 13 swarm-founding New World polistines, and 16 vespines. The overall structure of the stinger is remarkably uniform within the family. Although the wasps show a broad range in body size and social habits, the central part of Citation: Bissessarsingh, M.; Starr, the venom-delivery apparatus—the sting shaft—varies only to a modest extent in length relative to C.K.