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''Polistes versicolor'', also known as the variegated paper wasp or yellow paper wasp, is a
subtropical The subtropical zones or subtropics are geographical and climate zones to the north and south of the tropics. Geographically part of the temperate zones of both hemispheres, they cover the middle latitudes from to approximately 35° north a ...
social wasp within ''
Polistes Wasps of the cosmopolitan genus ''Polistes'' (the only genus in the tribe Polistini) are the most familiar of the polistine wasps, and are the most common type of paper wasp in North America. Walter Ebeling coined the vernacular name "umbrella ...
'', the most common genus of
paper wasp Paper wasps are vespid wasps that gather fibers from dead wood and plant stems, which they mix with saliva, and use to construct nests made of gray or brown papery material. Some types of paper wasps are also sometimes called umbrella wasps, d ...
. It is the most widely distributed of South American wasp species and is particularly common in the Southeastern Brazilian states.Zara, Fernando, and Jose Balestieri. "Behavioural Catalogue of ''Polistes versicolor'' Olivier (Vespidae: Polistinae) Post-emergent Colonies." ''Naturalia'' 25 (2000): 301-19. Print. This social wasp is commonly referred to as the yellow paper wasp due to the distinct yellow bands found on its thorax and abdomen.Gobbi, Nivar, Fernando B. Noll, and Marcelo A. H. Penna. "‘Winter’ Aggregations, Colony Cycle, and Seasonal Phenotypic Change in the Paper Wasp ''Polistes versicolor'' in Subtropical Brazil." ''Naturwissenschaften'' 93.10 (2006): 487-94. Web. The ''P. versicolor'' nest, made of chewed vegetable fiber, is typically a single, uncovered comb attached to the
substratum In linguistics, a stratum (Latin for "layer") or strate is a language that influences or is influenced by another through contact. A substratum or substrate is a language that has lower power or prestige than another, while a superstratum or sup ...
by a single petiole.Torres, RF, VO Torres, YR Suarez, and WF Antonialli-Junior. "Effect of the Habitat Alteration by Human Activity on Colony Productivity of the Social Wasp ''Polistes versicolor'' (Olivier) (Hymenoptera: Vespidae)." ''Sociobiology'' 61.1 (2014): 100-06. Web. 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.De Oliveira, Simone, Mariana De Castro, and Fabio Prezoto. "Foundation Pattern, Productivity and Colony Success of the Paper Wasp, ''Polistes versicolor''." ''The Journal of Insect Science'' 10 (2010): n. pag. Web. 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.González, J. A., F. S. Nascimento, and S. F. Gayubo. "Observations on the Winter Aggregates of Two Polistine Paper Wasps (Hymenoptera Vespidae Polistinae)." ''Tropical Zoology'' 15.1 (2002): 1-4. Web. Wagging movements are also often used as a form of communication within the colony.Esch, Harald. "Wagging Movements in the Wasp ''Polistes versicolor'' Vulgaris Bequaert." ''Zeitschrift für vergleichende Physiologie'' 72.3 (1971): 221-25. Web. The yellow paper wasp is generally predatory, capturing a wide range of insects, although it often feeds on pollen and nectar as well.Kohler, Andreas. "Floral Preferences of the Polistine Wasp ''Polistes versicolor versicolor'' Olivier, 1792 (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Plostinae, Polistini) in Santa Cruz Do Sul, Southern Brazil." ''Biociencias'' 16.2 (2008): n. pag. Web. Therefore, ''P. versicolor'' can be useful as a pollinator or as effective pest control.Prezoto, Fábio, Helba H. Santos-Prezoto, Vera L.l. Machado, and José C. Zanuncio. "Prey Captured and Used in ''Polistes versicolor'' (Olivier) (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) Nourishment." ''Neotropical Entomology'' 35.5 (2006): 707-09. Web.


Taxonomy and phylogeny

The French entomologist
Guillaume-Antoine Olivier Guillaume-Antoine Olivier (; 19 January 1756, Les Arcs near Toulon – 1 October 1814, Lyon) was a French entomologist and naturalist. Life Olivier studied medicine in Montpellier, where he became good friends with Pierre Marie Auguste Brous ...
described the yellow paper wasp in 1791. Its species name, ''versicolor'', is a Latin term that means a variety of colors, perhaps referring to the bright coloration of its abdomen and thorax. Within the subfamily Polistinae of the family Vespidae, the genus ''
Polistes Wasps of the cosmopolitan genus ''Polistes'' (the only genus in the tribe Polistini) are the most familiar of the polistine wasps, and are the most common type of paper wasp in North America. Walter Ebeling coined the vernacular name "umbrella ...
'' (paper wasps) has about 200 species distributed throughout the world mostly in the tropical region. A widely studied genus, ''Polistes'' is now considered key to understanding the evolution of social behavior among wasps and other invertebrates. The yellow paper wasp is a member of the New World ''Polistes'', which are found in the subgenus ''Aphanilopterus''. As morphological variation among the ''Aphanilopterus'' is small, ''P. versicolor'' shares many similarities with its ''Aphanilopterus'' relatives, especially '' P. instabilis'' . Both species may form winter aggregations when living at high altitudes. Ecologically, the yellow paper wasp lives in conditions similar to those of other temperate zone species, such as '' P. fuscatus'' (in the subgenus ''Fuscopolistes'') and '' P. canadensis'' (also in the subgenus ''Aphanilopterus''). While the seasonal conditions are not drastic in terms of temperature, these species both live in places with a pronounced dry season.


Description and identification

Both male and female ''P. versicolor'' have yellow transparent wings and a black body featuring the characteristic yellow bands on the
thorax The thorax or chest is a part of the anatomy of humans, mammals, and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main divisions of the c ...
and abdomen. The differences between females are exclusively size-related. Within an aggregation of yellow paper wasps, the queens are the indisputably the largest females and newly emerged females are the smallest. Aggregated females are larger than all other females. The female body sizes within a colony often depend on the environmental conditions: an increase in body size is often seen with the approach of an unfavorable season.


Nest construction

New colonies and nests are usually founded by an association of females; female associations are responsible for the success of 51.5% of new colonies. Before beginning the construction, the foundress first makes recognition flights, inspecting the structure to be used for the nest by flying close to the selected area and touching the substratum with its antennae. The papery nests are often a grayish coloration and frequently built on
gypsum plaster Plaster is a building material used for the protective or decorative coating of walls and ceilings and for moulding and casting decorative elements. In English, "plaster" usually means a material used for the interiors of buildings, while "re ...
. Foundations of nests on gypsum plaster have been found to be significantly larger than those on other types of substrate, a testament to the synanthropy of the yellow paper wasp. On average, the ''P. versicolor'' nest consists of 244.2 cells and 171.67 adult wasps. Colony size can vary from seven females (foundress associations) to nearly 100 females (mature colonies). Once the location for the new colony foundation is established, the construction begins with the peduncle: vegetable material is chewed with saliva and then attached to the substrate in thread form. The first cell is then constructed with a circular format, during which the female constantly touches the cell sides with its antennae. Afterwards, hexagonal outlines are formed as peripheral cells are built around the initial circular cell and attached to neighboring cells. As larvae develop in the cells, chewed vegetable fiber is added to the extremities of the cells to elevate their wall height. Throughout the colony cycle, as the colonies grow and the cell numbers increase, the peduncle is further reinforced with additional plant fiber to ensure adequate support for the nest as it enlarges.


Distribution and habitat

Widely distributed throughout
South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sou ...
, the yellow paper wasp’s distribution ranges from
Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...
to
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...
. High densities of ''P. versicolor'' have been observed on the high mountains of the Turimiquire massif in Anzoategui State, Venezuela, most likely caused by migration due to the seasonal periodicity associated with the dry season.Manzanilla, J., L. De Sousa, and D. Sanchez. "High Densities of ''Polistes versicolor versicolor'' (Oliver 1791) (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) at Cerro La Laguna, Turimiquire Massif, Anzoátegui State, Venezuela." ''Boletín De Entomología Venezolana'' 15.2 (2000): 245-48. Web. The yellow paper wasp’s nests can frequently be found in natural environments with substrata consisting of leaves, branches, roots, stones, and even the abandoned nests of other social wasp species. In some cases, the wasp actually takes over empty ''
Mischocyttarus drewseni ''Mischocyttarus drewseni'', which is sometimes spelled "drewsenii", is a social wasp in the family Vespidae. It is commonly found in Neotropical regions of South America, including Brazil, Peru, Venezuela, Colombia and Paraguay. This mid-siz ...
'' nests to lay their eggs instead of creating their own nests.De Souza, Andre, Silva, Newton and Prezoto, Fabio, "A rare but successful reproductive tactic in a social wasp (Hymenoptera:Vespidae): Use of heterospecific nests", "Revista Chilena de Historia Natural", 2012. Often, however, its nests are found in human constructions; the yellow paper wasp is facultatively
synanthropic A synanthrope (from the Greek σύν ''syn'', "together with" + ἄνθρωπος ''anthropos'', "man") is a member of a species of wild animal or plant that lives near, and benefits from, an association with human beings and the somewhat artific ...
. ''P. versicolor'' even appear to nest preferably in human constructions in areas with little human activity; nests in natural vegetation are increasingly rare. This has been linked to the fact that the fragility of plants often does not offer appropriate support for the nest and exposes the nest to the stress of weather. In contrast, nests on manmade gypsum plaster are typically found in high places in buildings, where these nests are highly protected from not only human interference, but also weather and direct solar irradiation.


Colony cycle

While ''P. versicolor'' seems to rely on strictly annual colony cycles at high latitudes and altitudes, the colony cycle length can vary; short-cycle colonies can have life expectancies ranging from three to six months while long-cycle colonies can range from six to ten months. In colonies studied in southwest
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
(where the yellow paper wasp is particularly common), the colony cycle broadly ranges from 3 to 10 months. Although the climatic conditions may directly or indirectly affect colony productivity, the yellow paper wasp is an
asynchronous Asynchrony is the state of not being in synchronization. Asynchrony or asynchronous may refer to: Electronics and computing * Asynchrony (computer programming), the occurrence of events independent of the main program flow, and ways to deal wit ...
species, as there appears to be no relationship between the colony’s development and the season of the year. An aggregation may start in the broad interval of March to August and founders do not leave the aggregation at the same time. Therefore, new foundations can occur in different periods. In southeastern Brazil, aggregations of the yellow paper wasp start in early March, before winter, and last until mid-August. The egg stage can vary from 5 to 16 days long, the
larval A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...
stage can vary from 12 to 46 days long, and the pupal stage can vary from 16 to 26 days long. The average lifetime of a subordinate worker ranges from 10 to 17 days. Males can stay in the colony for a few days before being forced by leave by the females. While only new queens traditionally initiate new colonies as they leave their previous nests, aggregation within ''P. versicolor'' represents an alternative path for females, offering them the choice between starting a new nest and waiting to be a foundress. Newly emerged females can thus choose to be workers, waiting a year to be a foundress until more favorable conditions arise. Females with long colony cycles could also replace a reproductive as an egg layer on the former nest as well.


Winter aggregations

The yellow paper wasps have clear annual colony cycles, but the young queens of the colonies also have the opportunity to hibernate during the winter. Given the absence of a harsh climate, the occurrence of winter aggregations in the tropical ''P. versicolor'' is optional; there are some colonies that do not form these aggregations in their annual cycle. Winter aggregation is thus different from the
diapause In animal dormancy, diapause is the delay in development in response to regular and recurring periods of adverse environmental conditions.Tauber, M.J., Tauber, C.A., Masaki, S. (1986) ''Seasonal Adaptations of Insects''. Oxford University Press I ...
observed in species living in temperate climates subjected to adverse climatic conditions. Rather, winter aggregation in this tropical species reflects the behavioral adaptability of the yellow paper wasp, allowing females to wait for better environmental conditions to start a new nest, rather than being forced to start a new nest as soon as they emerge. Winter aggregations (composed of hibernating queens) often produce larger females, who then are more likely to successfully become new queens. Within aggregations, most individuals possess developing ovaries. Young can develop their ovaries before the aggregation, but many females develop their ovaries during the time spent in aggregation while waiting for a better season to found a nest.


Effects of human activity

With increasing numbers of ''P. versicolor'' nests built in urban areas in human constructions, the yellow paper wasps have discovered many advantages, such as a reduction in interspecific competition, protection against a variety of climatic factors and protection from predation, especially by vertebrates.


On colony strategies

This increased interaction with human activity can clearly be seen on the varying strategies adopted by the wasp colonies. In habitats more altered by human activity, 60% of yellow paper wasp nests occur on human constructions and 40% occur on trees. In contrast, in habitats less altered by human activity, 100% of the nests are found in trees, even if there are buildings nearby. In the habitats less altered by human activity, there is a significant positive correlation between the number of cells constructed and the number of adults produced, as well as between the diameter of the petiole and the nest dry mass. In these colonies, the population increases proportionally with the size of the nest. This similar increase is not seen as clearly in habitats more altered by human activity. This may be because in environments with more human activity, a larger nest may attract more attention and is therefore more likely to be eliminated. The yellow paper wasps may have adapted to this situation, preferring to reuse cells instead of increasing the size of the nest.


On colony productivity

Resulting ramifications on colony productivity have also been shown. The productivity in the habitat less altered is significantly higher than in the habitat more altered, with respect to the number of cells constructed, number of adults produced, dry mass of nests, and proportion of productive cells. In the habitats more altered by human activity, there is a large concentration of buildings and predominantly grassy vegetation, suggesting fewer available resources for which the colonies to build nests from. Habitat quality has been shown to help contribute to the lower colony productivity in these environments greatly altered by human activity. For example, the amount of resources (such as the larvae of other insects) available for feeding immatures has been more limited in habitats with higher human activity.


Dominance hierarchy

With the tropical ''P. Versicolor'', colony founding can often occur by multiple females as foundress females join to construct a new nest or, more traditionally, queens can initiate new nests separately. Just after the founding phase, a linear reproductive dominance hierarchy is established. The dominant female holds a monopoly on egg-laying, thereby spending longer periods of time within the nest while the workers forage. The dominant female also receives a greater share of food than her nestmates. In contrast, rather than focus on reproduction, the subordinate foundresses take on the workload of the nest, working on cell construction, nest defense, and foraging (for prey, nectar, water, etc.). Conflicts of interest among future foundresses remain high as they compete over the shared resources of nourishment, such as protein. Unequal nourishment is often what leads to the size differences that result in dominant-subordinate position rankings. As egg-layers tend to receive more protein than those who are not egg-layers, as is the general pattern, the dominant-subordinate context in the yellow paper wasps is directly related to the exchange of food. Therefore, if during the winter aggregate, the female is able to obtain greater access to food, the female could thus reach a dominant position. This competition and aggression over resources suggest that winter aggregations can be fragile associations. Aggression is usually seen when a usurping female challenges the founder. This aggression can range from nipping to the more extreme physical forms of aggression such as biting and stinging (often fatal).


Division of labor

While the distribution of ''P. versicolor'' behavior in the post-emergence phase shows little relationship to an individual’s age, the distribution of labor appears instead to correlate with dominant and subordinate statuses (which tend to correlate with size). Dominant females check cells, build new cells, and
oviposit The ovipositor is a tube-like organ used by some animals, especially insects, for the laying of eggs. In insects, an ovipositor consists of a maximum of three pairs of appendages. The details and morphology of the ovipositor vary, but typical ...
significantly more frequently than subordinates. Meanwhile, subordinate females also perform tasks like licking the nest petiole, feeding the larvae, and foraging more frequently than dominant females. Subordinates complete 81.4% of the total foraging activity, while dominants only complete 18.6% of the total foraging.


Worker activity

The worker activity in the yellow paper wasp is episodic, characterized by pause periods (when all individuals are immobile) and periods of intense activity (most individuals are in motion; wasps are foraging, feeding larvae, and interacting with each other). No single individual (or queen) is responsible for starting and stopping periods of activity or physically stimulating the departure of workers. Rather, the organization of working periods seems to be more of a self-organizing, decentralized system in which the workers themselves regulate colony activity. This is a more efficient way to satisfy the colony because the colony development and nest maintenance activities can continue even after queen loss. Most activity periods are triggered by workers returning from foraging to the nest with material for the colony. Foraging activity itself appears to be influenced by the interactions between various members of the colony or direct access of workers to the needs of the colony. Some of the mechanisms that can regulate foraging activity include aggression.Souza, A. R., and F. Prezoto. "Regulation of Worker Activity in the Social Wasp ''Polistes versicolor''." ''Insectes Sociaux'' 59.2 (2012): 193-99. Web.


Reproductive suppression

Either an association of females or one dominant queen often founds the yellow paper wasp nests; reproductive dominance is often established soon after the founding period. This reproductive dominance is often characterized by physical aggression of the dominant female(s) directed at the associated females who tend to be sisters. Most females who join aggregations have undeveloped ovaries, while most females from foundress associations have well-developed ovaries. Since only larger females present with higher ovarian development, size (or something correlated with size) appears to be a limiting factor for attaining queen status in ''P. versicolor''. The subordinates can remain potentially fertile and can eventually oviposit, but under extreme dominance conditions, some females reabsorb their
oocytes An oocyte (, ), oöcyte, or ovocyte is a female gametocyte or germ cell involved in reproduction. In other words, it is an immature ovum, or egg cell. An oocyte is produced in a female fetus in the ovary during female gametogenesis. The female g ...
in the nest’s postemergence phase. While insemination is not restricted necessarily to the larger females, the smaller females are never inseminated. In aggregations, 75% of the females are inseminated, whereas in founder associations, 85% of the females are inseminated. The queen seeks to discourage reproduction from other females in the nest and thus exerts physical dominance to ensure this. However, ovarian
diapause In animal dormancy, diapause is the delay in development in response to regular and recurring periods of adverse environmental conditions.Tauber, M.J., Tauber, C.A., Masaki, S. (1986) ''Seasonal Adaptations of Insects''. Oxford University Press I ...
is absent in foundress associations. This provides the advantage that foundresses are able to start new nests and lay eggs immediately after they leave an aggregation.


Genetic relatedness between colonies

Unlike reports of diploid males in other species of ''Polistes'', none of the analyzed ''P. versicolor'' males presented with a heterozygous phenotype in any loci, indicating the absence of diploid yellow paper wasp males. Genetic relatedness within ''P. versicolor'' broods is found to be lower than the ''r'' = 0.75 for females and ''r'' = 0.5 for males that would be expected for
haplodiploid Haplodiploidy is a sex-determination system in which males develop from unfertilized eggs and are haploid, and females develop from fertilized eggs and are diploid. Haplodiploidy is sometimes called arrhenotoky. Haplodiploidy determines the sex ...
species under monogynous conditions; it has been found, however, that ''P. versicolor'' doesn't necessarily mate under monogynous conditions. The low genetic relatedness is another consequence of the presence of more than one egg-laying female in about 40% of yellow paper wasp colonies. This suggests that dominant queens partially lose control of their monopoly on reproduction in the nests, resulting in several other females occasionally laying eggs. Often, the queen monopolizes reproduction in the lower regions of the nest containing the new cells; however, because the queen often remains in these lower regions, there is potential for other females to lay eggs in the upper areas of the nest with the recycled cells. This is supported by the fact that the levels of genetic relatedness are higher among the offspring from the lower areas of the nests compared to the upper areas, where more than one female would be laying eggs in the same area. This occurrence of spatially discontinuous oviposition areas is a sign of both the existence of more than one egg-laying female and territoriality, where each female and her associates take care of their respective broods. Thus,
kin recognition Kin recognition, also called kin detection, is an organism's ability to distinguish between close genetic kin and non-kin. In evolutionary biology and psychology, such an ability is presumed to have evolved for inbreeding avoidance, though animals d ...
is facilitated by
territoriality In ethology, territory is the sociographical area that an animal consistently defends against conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against animals of other species) using agonistic behaviors or (less commonly) real physical aggression. ...
, which compensates for the low kin-recognition ability among nestmates.Junior, Keize, Kimie Simokomaki, Caroline Gruber, and Marco Lama. "Sociogenetic Structure of ''Polistes (Aphanilopterus) versicolor'' Olivier, 1971 Colonies (Hymenoptera, Vespidae, Polistini)." ''Genetics and Molecular Biology'' 33.4 (2010): 669-75. Web.


Costs and benefits of sociality

Foundress association is a common strategy for the yellow paper wasp. 90.06% of colonies founded by a single female ''P. versicolor'' fail; a single foundress will often abandon the nest after the founding phase before the larvae appear to join other foundresses to form associations. While the productivity of individual foundresses is lower in colonies with foundress associations than in colonies with a single foundress, the overall colony itself is more productive in a foundress association—the duration of the pre-emergence phase is reduced and group size is directly related to the number of cells built. Therefore, foundress association appears to be a strategy in which the benefits from protection against
parasitism Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson ha ...
and usurpation, ergonomic synergism, and the increase of survival levels outweigh the costs to the individual foundress’ productivity.


Evidence of sociality

Evidence for the establishment of sociality as an optimization strategy for ''P. versicolor'' can be seen in the frequent shift in females between adjacent nests. Both females with developed eggs in their ovaries and workers can be found shifting between nests, even if the relatedness between the shifting females and the foundresses of the new nest are considered to be low. Despite the low genetic relatedness within and between nests, overt dominance behavior and aggression among females remains significantly lower than that found in other paper wasps, showing how important
sociality Sociality is the degree to which individuals in an animal population tend to associate in social groups (gregariousness) and form cooperative societies. Sociality is a survival response to evolutionary pressures. For example, when a mother wa ...
is as a strategy for the yellow paper wasp.Itô, Yosiaki. "Shifts of Females between Adjacent Nests Of ''Polistes versicolor'' (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in Panama." ''Insectes Sociaux'' 31.1 (1984): 103-11. Web.


Communication

''P. versicolor'' is known for its wagging movements as a form of communication within the colony. The yellow paper wasp can waggle with a frequency of 10.6±2.1 Hz (n=190). The wasp walks over the cells of the nest and wiggles its gaster horizontally, with the last abdominal segment suspended over the pupae and
larvae A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. T ...
. Two wagging periods that last 0.33±0.09 seconds (n=34) each occur within a second. The next pair follows after 10 or 20 seconds. During these wagging movements, two types of sound bursts accompany the movements, with intensities between 70 and 80 dB. Dominant females exhibited 10.2% of the recorded wagging behavior while subordinates were recorded performing only 1.4% of this behavior. Because the wagging movements are displayed significantly more frequently by dominants than subordinates (p<0.01), this behavior has been associated with dominance. It is suspected that the wagging movements may be related to the release of “dominance
pheromones A pheromone () is a secreted or excreted chemical factor that triggers a social response in members of the same species. Pheromones are chemicals capable of acting like hormones outside the body of the secreting individual, to affect the behavio ...
” during cell inspection and food exchange with larvae. Therefore, the wagging can be seen as part of a defensive behavior. The subordinates often perform these wagging movements upon the return of a forager to the nest. These wagging movements, along with other communication mechanisms, such as lateral vibration, antennae touching and aggression are social behaviors that these yellow paper wasps use to state the needs of the colony. For example, the wagging movements can signal the arrival of new material into the nest and aggression between workers can be used to stimulate others to increase foraging expeditions.


Diet

The worker yellow paper wasps tend to complete the bulk of colony feeding. The secretion of the workers’ hypopharyngeal glands is the main constituent of the royal jelly produced by the workers to feed the brood. The development of these glands can be clearly linked to the behaviors carried out by the workers in the nest; queens and males do not possess developed hypopharyngeal glands. After emergence, workers from the 3rd to the 18th day feed almost exclusively on
pollen Pollen is a powdery substance produced by seed plants. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametop ...
, which provides the protein needed to produce the royal jelly in their hypopharyngeal glands that feeds the rest of the
brood Brood may refer to: Nature * Brood, a collective term for offspring * Brooding, the incubation of bird eggs by their parents * Bee brood, the young of a beehive * Individual broods of North American Periodical Cicadas: ** Brood X, the largest b ...
. After the 18th day, the workers become foragers, constantly flying to and from the nest to collect food; they switch from feeding on pollen to feeding on nectar, which can better provide for their energetic needs. With the switch to nectar consumption comes a large reduction of their hypopharyngeal glands. However, these structures remain active throughout the lives of these wasps.Britto, Fábio Barros, and Flávio Henrique Caetano. "Morphological Features and Occurrence of Degenerative Characteristics in the Hypopharyngeal Glands of the Paper Wasp ''Polistes versicolor'' (Olivier) (Hymenoptera: Vespidae)." ''Micron'' 37.8 (2006): 742-47. Web. ''P. versicolor'' is generally a predatory wasp, capturing a wide range of insects. While they don’t typically have a prey preference, the yellow paper wasps usually feed on insects from the orders Lepidoptera (95.4%) and Coleoptera (1.1%). ''Chlosyne lacinia saundersii'' (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) is the most collected prey (13.5%).Prezoto, Fábio, Helba H. Santos-Prezoto, Vera L.l. Machado, and José C. Zanuncio. "Prey Captured and Used in ''Polistes versicolor'' (Olivier) (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) Nourishment." ''Neotropical Entomology'' 35.5 (2006): 707-09. Web.


Defense

Ant attacks represent the largest predatory pressure for ''P. versicolor''. The yellow paper wasps have developed various ways to combat these ants, one of which is through their nest construction. Since the nests are single combs fixed to a
substratum In linguistics, a stratum (Latin for "layer") or strate is a language that influences or is influenced by another through contact. A substratum or substrate is a language that has lower power or prestige than another, while a superstratum or sup ...
by a peduncle, the suspended cells are often protected from attack by ants. If there is an ant attack, nest abandonment is easier and allows for a more rapid escape due to the fact that the wasps do not build envelopes over their nests. In addition, these wasps possess a gland located in the VI abdominal sternite (van de Vecht’s gland) that is primarily responsible for making an ant repellent substance. Tufts of hair near the edge of the VI abdominal sternite store and apply the ant repellent, secreting the ant repellent through a rubbing behavior. Although this rubbing behavior occurs throughout the colony cycle, it can be seen most frequently in the pre-emergence stage. Females in the pre-emergence stage are very busy with multiple tasks; therefore, it is more worthwhile for the female to invest in chemical defense in the post-emergence stage. Such active defense often includes alarm behavior, in which the wasps assume an upright stance, open their wings, and point their antennae at the source of their alarm. As the yellow paper wasps wiggle their gasters, alarm
pheromones A pheromone () is a secreted or excreted chemical factor that triggers a social response in members of the same species. Pheromones are chemicals capable of acting like hormones outside the body of the secreting individual, to affect the behavio ...
are thought to be released. These alarm behaviors have been linked to the presence of the parasitic
Ichneumonidae The Ichneumonidae, also known as the ichneumon wasps, Darwin wasps, or ichneumonids, are a family of parasitoid wasps of the insect order Hymenoptera. They are one of the most diverse groups within the Hymenoptera with roughly 25,000 species cur ...
; these parasitic females inject eggs into the hosts or lay eggs external to the host so that the larvae can attack the host from the outside.Togni, Olga, and Edilberto Giannotti. "Nest Defense Behavior Against the Attack of Ants in Colonies of Pre-emergent ''Mischocyttarus Cerberus'' (Hymenoptera, Vespidae)." ''Acta Ethologica'' 11.2 (2008): 43-54. Web.


Agriculture

Each colony of ''P. versicolor'' is estimated to capture 4,015 insect preys per year. Thus, these yellow paper wasp colonies can prove to be a powerful strategy for pest management of
herbivorous A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example foliage or marine algae, for the main component of its diet. As a result of their plant diet, herbivorous animals typically have mouthpar ...
insects, especially defoliating caterpillars. By transferring ''P. versicolor'' to artificial shelters, these colonies can be managed and used to restore the balance between the species in agricultural ecosystems with relatively minimal costs. In addition to agricultural pest management, ''P. versicolor'' can also be a useful
pollinator A pollinator is an animal that moves pollen from the male anther of a flower to the female stigma of a flower. This helps to bring about fertilization of the ovules in the flower by the male gametes from the pollen grains. Insects are the m ...
. These social wasps mainly feed on honeydew, fruit juices, and
nectar Nectar is a sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called nectaries or nectarines, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal mutualist ...
. While foraging for these food supplies, especially nectar, the yellow paper wasps are able to simultaneously pollinate many flowering plants. They are most attracted to species of the plant family Asteraceae, which not only have a large nectar resource concealed at a depth of only a few millimeters, but also include species flowering in May and June, allowing pollen to be collected in addition to nectar.


Stings

''P. versicolor'' contains relatively large amounts of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) in its venom and venom-containing body parts, such as its stinger. While the stinging apparatus of the
larvae A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. T ...
and pupae yield equivalent amounts of 5-HT, the stinging apparatus of the adult wasps has a much higher content of 0.87 μg of 5-HT per individual. But the stinging apparatus is not the sole source of 5-HT in these wasps; rather, a relatively large amount of 5-HT has also been found in the heads of the yellow paper wasp. The 5-HT in this venom has been found to play at least two roles: one in defense as a pain-producing agent and the other in the distribution and penetration of the paralyzing components to vulnerable sites in the offender.
Acetylcholine Acetylcholine (ACh) is an organic chemical that functions in the brain and body of many types of animals (including humans) as a neurotransmitter. Its name is derived from its chemical structure: it is an ester of acetic acid and choline. Par ...
,
histamine Histamine is an organic nitrogenous compound involved in local immune responses, as well as regulating physiological functions in the gut and acting as a neurotransmitter for the brain, spinal cord, and uterus. Since histamine was discover ...
, and kinins are other factors found in the venom that assist the 5-HT in both defense and pain penetration. These factors work in combination to produce pain by depolarizing certain sensory
nerve A nerve is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of nerve fibers (called axons) in the peripheral nervous system. A nerve transmits electrical impulses. It is the basic unit of the peripheral nervous system. A nerve provides a common pathway for the ...
endings as the result of ion movements and changes in permeability. In addition, these proteins work to increase the rate of absorption of the paralyzing
venom Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a st ...
into tissues and body fluids. This results in the rapid immobilization of the animal or of the certain body parts of the animal receiving the venom.Welsh, John H., and Carolyn S. Batty. "5-Hydroxytryptamine Content of Some Arthropod Venoms and Venom-containing Parts." ''Toxicon'' 1.4 (1963): 165-70. Web.


Notes


References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5515190 versicolor Hymenoptera of South America Insects described in 1791