''Sceliphron caementarium'', also known as the yellow-legged mud-dauber wasp, black-and-yellow mud dauber (within the US), or black-waisted mud-dauber (outside of the US), is a species of sphecid wasp. There are some 30 other species of ''Sceliphron'' that occur throughout the world, though in appearance and habits they are quite similar to ''S. caementarium''.

Etymology

The Latin species name ''caementarius'' means ''mason'' or ''builder of walls''.

Distribution and habitat

''S. caementarium'' is widespread in

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, the

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Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

and the

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, and has been introduced to many Pacific Islands (including Australia,

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, and Japan),

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and

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, where it has become established in some countries of the Mediterranean Basin (

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

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and Corsica,

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, the Canary Islands, and Madeira) and

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, and

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

. This species is found in a wide variety of habitats, such as rock ledges, man-made structures, puddles and other water edges,

cypress dome A cypress dome is a type of freshwater forested wetland, or a swamp, found in the southeastern part of the United States. They are dominated by the '' Taxodium spp''., either the bald cypress (''Taxodium distichum''), or pond cypress (''Taxodium as ...

s, in long leaf pines (''

Pinus palustris The longleaf pine (''Pinus palustris'') is a pine species native to the Southeastern United States, found along the coastal plain from East Texas to southern Virginia, extending into northern and central Florida. In this area it is also known as ...

''), and in

turkey oak Turkey oak is a common name for several species of oaks and may refer to: *''Quercus cerris'', native to southeastern Europe and Asia Minor *''Quercus laevis ''Quercus laevis'', the turkey oak, is a member of the red oak group of oaks. It is n ...

Description

''Sceliphron caementarium'' can reach a length of . Their petiole is generally black and is about half the length of the entire abdomen, however the population in the

desert southwest The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural region of the United States that generally includes Arizona, New Mexico, and adjacent portions of California, Colorado, N ...

often has a yellow petiole. The thorax shows various yellow markings, while the abdomen is normally black, with yellow

propodeum The propodeum or propodium is the first abdominal segment in Apocrita Hymenoptera (wasps, bees and ants). It is fused with the thorax to form the mesosoma. It is a single large sclerite A sclerite (Greek , ', meaning " hard") is a hardened bod ...

(typical of females). The eyes are black, the antennae are black, and the legs are yellow with black

trochanter A trochanter is a tubercle of the femur near its joint with the hip bone. In humans and most mammals, the trochanters serve as important muscle attachment sites. Humans are known to have three trochanters, though the anatomic "normal" includes ...

s and femurs. Within the United States, it is the only species with yellow-marked legs. The wings are a tawny color.Bugguide
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Biology

The black and yellow mud daubers are solitary

parasitoid wasp Parasitoid wasps are a large group of hymenopteran superfamilies, with all but the wood wasps (Orussoidea) being in the wasp-waisted Apocrita. As parasitoids, they lay their eggs on or in the bodies of other arthropods, sooner or later causin ...

s that build nests out of mud. These sphecid wasps collect mud balls at puddle and pool edges for constructing nests. Frequently, nests are built in shaded areas inside formations that are sheltered from the weather or from other environmental elements. These sites may be naturally-occurring, or man-made structures. Some examples are: under and inside various types of bridges, barns, garages, open-air porches, or under housing eaves. The nests comprise up to 25 vertically arranged, individual cylindrical cells. After initial creation and covering of the clutch, this sphecid wasp uses more mud as a means covering and protecting the whole cluster of cells, thereby forming a smooth appearance, and a uniform nest. The entire nest may attain an area equal to, or larger than, the size of an average human fist. After building a cell of the nest, the female wasp captures several

spider Spiders ( order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species ...

s. The captured prey are stung and paralyzed before being placed in the nest (usually 6-15 per cell), and then a single egg is deposited on the prey within each cell. The wasp then seals the cell with a thick mud plug. After finishing a series of cells, she leaves and does not return. While consuming the prey and increasing in size, the larva molts several times, until it molts into a

pupa A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''pupae'') is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in thei ...

. Once the pupa has developed into an adult wasp, the adult emerges from its pupal case and breaks out of its mud chamber. Adults can be seen in mid-summer feeding on nectar at flowers, especially Queen Anne's lace ('' Daucus carota''), parsnips and water parsnips ('' Sium suave'', '' Sium latifolium'', ''

Berula erecta ''Berula erecta'', known as lesser water-parsnip or cutleaf waterparsnip or narrow-leaved water-parsnip, is a member of the Apiaceae, carrot family. Growing to around tall, it is found in or by water. It is widespread across much of Europe, Asia ...

''). They have a low reproductive rate. Stings are rare due to their solitary and usually nonaggressive nature; however, nests are aggressively defended. A common species of

cuckoo wasp Commonly known as cuckoo wasps or emerald wasps, the hymenopteran family Chrysididae is a very large cosmopolitan group (over 3000 described species) of parasitoid or kleptoparasitic wasps, often highly sculptured, with brilliant metallic colors ...

, '' Chrysis angolensis'', is frequently a

cleptoparasite Kleptoparasitism (etymologically, parasitism by theft) is a form of feeding in which one animal deliberately takes food from another. The strategy is evolutionarily stable when stealing is less costly than direct feeding, which can mean when fo ...

in '' Sceliphron'' nests, and is only one of many different insects that parasitize these

mud dauber Mud dauber (or "mud wasp" or "dirt dauber") is a name commonly applied to a number of wasps from either the family Sphecidae or Crabronidae which build their nests from mud; this excludes members of the family Vespidae (especially the subfamily ...

Venom

Although they are common components of

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 ...

s, serotonin,

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 discovered ...

, acetylcholine, and

kinin A kinin is any of various structurally related polypeptides, such as bradykinin and kallidin. They are members of the autacoid family. Kinins are peptides that are cleaved from kininogens by the process of kallikreins. Kallikreins activate kinins ...

s are absent from ''S. caementarium'' venom.

Mentions in popular media

In 1996,

Birgenair Flight 301 Birgenair Flight 301 was a flight chartered by Turkish-managed Birgenair partner Alas Nacionales from Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic to Frankfurt, Germany, via Gander, Canada, and Berlin, Germany. On February 6, 1996, the 757-200 ope ...

crashed near Puerto Rico. The most probable cause of this

Boeing 757 The Boeing 757 is an American narrow-body airliner designed and built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The then-named 7N7, a twinjet successor for the 727 (a trijet), received its first orders in August 1978. The prototype completed its mai ...

crash was a blockage in a

Pitot tube A pitot ( ) tube (pitot probe) measures fluid flow velocity. It was invented by a French engineer, Henri Pitot, in the early 18th century, and was modified to its modern form in the mid-19th century by a French scientist, Henry Darcy. It ...

(device for air speed measurement) by a mud dauber's nest.

Gallery

File:Sceliphron-mud-dauber.jpg, ''S. caementarium'' collecting mud File:20100710.MudDauber-SceliphronCaementarium.Hannibal.jpg, ''S. caementarium'' with a load of mud, just before takeoff File:Black and Yellow Mud Dauber (Sphecidae, Sceliphron caementarium (Drury)) (36164276721).jpg, ''S. caementarium'' with a partially yellow petiole from Austin, TX File:Sphecidae - Sceliphron caementarium - Nest.JPG, A nest containing the cells covered with mud File:Contenuto di un nido di Sceliphron Caementarium (Vespa muratore).jpg, Paralyzed spiders used as larval provisions collected from a nest

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Black And Yellow Mud Dauber Sphecidae Biological pest control wasps Insects described in 1773 Hymenoptera of Europe