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A unique nest-protection strategy in a new species of spider wasp.

ABSTRACT: Hymenoptera show a great variation in reproductive potential and nesting behavior, from thousands of eggs in sawflies to just a dozen in nest-provisioning wasps. Reduction in reproductive potential in evolutionary derived Hymenoptera is often facilitated by advanced behavioral mechanisms and nesting strategies. Here we describe a surprising nesting behavior that was previously unknown in the entire animal kingdom: the use of a vestibular cell filled with dead ants in a new spider wasp (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae) species collected with trap nests in South-East China. We scientifically describe the 'Bone-house Wasp' as Deuteragenia ossarium sp. nov., named after graveyard bone-houses or ossuaries. We show that D. ossarium nests are less vulnerable to natural enemies than nests of other sympatric trap-nesting wasps, suggesting an effective nest protection strategy, most likely by utilizing chemical cues emanating from the dead ants.

SUBMITTER: Staab M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4079592 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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A unique nest-protection strategy in a new species of spider wasp.

Staab Michael M Ohl Michael M Zhu Chao-Dong CD Klein Alexandra-Maria AM

PloS one 20140702 7

Hymenoptera show a great variation in reproductive potential and nesting behavior, from thousands of eggs in sawflies to just a dozen in nest-provisioning wasps. Reduction in reproductive potential in evolutionary derived Hymenoptera is often facilitated by advanced behavioral mechanisms and nesting strategies. Here we describe a surprising nesting behavior that was previously unknown in the entire animal kingdom: the use of a vestibular cell filled with dead ants in a new spider wasp (Hymenopte ...[more]

PMID: 24987876

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Project description:In cooperative breeders, subordinates that have alternative reproductive options are expected to stay and help dominant breeders only as long as they contribute to group productivity, if their fitness is linked with colony success. Female Polistes dominula paper wasps live as cooperative breeders in small groups of typically fewer than 10 females. Subordinates tend to have high-quality outside options, and so could choose alternative breeding tactics if their work efforts increased productivity negligibly. In the founding stage before workers emerge, we tested the effect of various predictors on nest growth, as a proxy for group productivity, and explored the shape of the relationship between group size and nest growth. We found group size to be the only significant predictor of nest growth: variation among body sizes within the group showed no effect, suggesting a lack of size-dependent task specialization in this species. Average body size and average genetic relatedness between group members similarly showed no effects on nest growth. Group size had a non-linear effect so that per-capita benefits to nest growth decreased in larger groups, and groups of 10 or more would benefit negligibly from additional group members. Hence, females might be better off pursuing other options than joining a large group. This finding helps to explain why P. dominula groups are usually relatively small in our study population. Further studies may illuminate the mechanisms behind the smaller per-capita nest growth that we found in larger groups.Identifying which factors influence the productivity of animal groups is key to understanding why different species breed cooperatively in groups of varying sizes. In the paper wasp Polistes dominula, we investigated the growth rate of nests as a measure of group productivity. We found that average body size, the variation in body sizes within the group, and average genetic relatedness between group members did not affect nest growth, while group size had a strong, positive effect: nests grew faster with more group members, but the per-capita benefit decreased in larger groups. The addition of extra group members in groups of 10 or more had negligible effects on nest growth. Hence, wasps may be better off pursuing other options than joining large groups. This finding helps to explain why groups normally consist of fewer than 10 wasps in this population.

Dataset Information

A unique nest-protection strategy in a new species of spider wasp.

Publications

A unique nest-protection strategy in a new species of spider wasp.

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