wasp nests
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Author(s):  
Nao Ota

Niche partitioning is often vital for the coexistence of ecologically similar species under limited resources. Here I will report the nesting strategy of the two sympatric songbirds and the species differences, which have been overlooked in the past. Blue-capped and red-cheeked cordon-bleus are socially monogamous, biparental songbirds (family Estrildidae) that sympatrically inhabit East Africa. My field observation during their breeding season revealed that red-cheeked cordon-bleus build their nests near wasp nests more frequently than blue-capped cordon-bleus. Blue-capped cordon-bleus instead tended to take over weaver’s old nest more often or use a broader range of nesting materials compared to red-cheeked cordon-bleus. These nesting strategies are already described in the literature as common behaviors in both species. However, the species differences of the adopting strategies have never been reported. While Estrildid finches are one of the best well-studied bird families of their behavior under the captive condition, my finding suggests that we still have limited knowledge of their wild behaviors and ecological plausibility, which is required to understand the functions and evolution.


2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (181) ◽  
pp. 20210418
Author(s):  
Willy Daney de Marcillac ◽  
Lien Thi Phuong Nguyen ◽  
Camille Aracheloff ◽  
Serge Berthier ◽  
Bernd Schöllhorn

An exceptionally bright fluorescent biomatter was discovered when exploring, with UV-A light, the nests of several oriental paper wasp species of the genus Polistes , a genus of diurnal social insects. Fluorescence spectra of the cocoon cap membranes revealed narrow emission bands in the green range of the visible spectrum. Large Stokes shifts of around 160 nm and high fluorescence quantum yields of up to 35% were measured. Transmission spectra were recorded in order to estimate the contribution of the fluorescence to the visible light transmitted through the cocoon cap membrane. The nest fluorescence of the Vietnamese wasps was compared with a European and an American species. Potential biological functions of these interesting fluorescence properties of the studied biomaterial are discussed. The discovery of this striking example of a fluorescent terrestrial biomaterial may contribute to the debate on adaptive biological functions of natural fluorescence and falls in line with the growing interest in biodiversity and bio-inspiration.


Author(s):  
Arnold van Huis

AbstractThis study’s purpose was to make an overview of how ants, bees, wasps, and their products, such as honey are utilized, perceived, and experienced in daily life across sub-Saharan Africa. Ethno-entomological information was collected by interviews with more than 300 people from 27 countries and by literature studies. Queens of the ant Carebara vidua are deliberately eaten and unintentionally bee larvae with honey and sugar ants with sugar. Honey, apart from food, is widely used to treat numerous medical problems and as a stimulant (for the memory) or as a cosmetic. In the Qur’an, the medical value of honey is recognized. Seed stores of ants may be harvested by humans. In Sudan, bee stings are used to cure arthritis as bee venom has bioactive properties. Wasp nests are used to cure inflammations such as mumps. Certain insect properties are used in conveying these treatments to persons it is employed to, such as wasps feed do make dogs vicious. Some stories seem to make no sense like the snake-trapping ants in Madagascar, but a scientific explanation is provided. Certain insects’ looks may inspire people to construct stories or have proverbs such as the very narrow waist of wasps, suggesting sterility. Bee swarms and driver ants are feared all over and believed to be employed (by witchdoctors) to punish. Not all stories of events with bees or ants are similar across sub-Saharan Africa. Social insects are also used to stimulate cohesion between people.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arnold Van Huis

Abstract Background: The order Hymenoptera has about 117,000 known species of which about 20.000 in the Afrotropical zone. The families covered are ants, bees, and wasps. They belong to the suborder Apocrita, characterized by a constriction between the first and second abdominal segments. The purpose of the study was to make an overview of how ants, bees and wasps and their products such as honey are utilized, perceived, and experienced in daily life across sub-Saharan Africa.Method: Ethno-entomological information on ants, bees and wasps in sub-Saharan Africa was collected by: (1) interviews with more than 300 people from about 120 ethnic groups in 27 countries in the region; (2) library studies in Africa, London, Paris and Leiden.Results : Of the order of the Hymenoptera only queens of the ant Carebara vidua are deliberately eaten. Often unintentionally bee larvae are eaten with honey and sugar ants with sugar. Apart from honey being a food item, it is also widely used to treat numerous medical problems, as a stimulant (for the memory) or as a cosmetic. It is also used in naming or wedding ceremonies. In the Qur’an, the medical value of honey is recognized. Seed stores of ants maybe harvested by humans. In the Sudan bee stings are used to cure arthritis; bee venom having bioactive properties. Wasp nests are used to cure inflammations such as mumps. The properties of certain insects are used to convey these treats to persons it is employed to, such as nasty stinging wasps to make dogs vicious. Some stories seem to make no sense like the snake-trapping ants in Madagascar, but a scientific explanation is provided. The looks of certain insects may inspire people to construct stories or have proverbs such as the very narrow waste of wasps, suggesting sterility. Bee swarms and driver ants are feared all over and believed to be employed (by witchdoctors) to punish. Not all stories of events with bees or ants are similar across sub-Saharan Africa. These insects, being social, are also used to stimulate cohesion between people.Conclusion: Ants, bees and wasps in sub-Saharan Africa maybe feared because of their bites and stings. However, the insects or their products are often employed for medical reasons, honey having numerous applications. They are also many stories and believes in which the characteristics of these insects play a role.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 2652
Author(s):  
Chaolin Fang ◽  
Varenyam Achal

Wasps are a group of social insects that build a house, known as a nest, from locally available building materials cemented by their saliva and secretions. Similar to termite nests, there could be many beneficiary bacteria present in their house that can play an important part in maintaining sustainability in soil ecosystems. Thus, the present study was initiated with a physico-chemical characterization of wasp nests collected from residential and forest zones, followed by unconfined compressive strength (UCS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis to identify major associated minerals. Further, MiSeq Illumina sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene (V3–V4 regions) was carried out to analyze complete bacterial community composition of wasp nests. The resulting data showed a dominance of Actinobacteria followed by Proteobacteria in both nests. Kaistobacter and Phycicoccus were the dominant genera in each type of wasp nest. It was concluded that wasp nests are an abundant source to isolate bacteria that can potentially be helpful in soil biogeochemical cycling and fertility, antibiotics production and bioremediation.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. eaay3922 ◽  
Author(s):  
Damien Finch ◽  
Andrew Gleadow ◽  
Janet Hergt ◽  
Vladimir A. Levchenko ◽  
Pauline Heaney ◽  
...  

The Kimberley region in Western Australia hosts one of the world’s most substantial bodies of indigenous rock art thought to extend in a series of stylistic or iconographic phases from the present day back into the Pleistocene. As with other rock art worldwide, the older styles have proven notoriously difficult to date quantitatively, requiring new scientific approaches. Here, we present the radiocarbon ages of 24 mud wasp nests that were either over or under pigment from 21 anthropomorphic motifs of the Gwion style (previously referred to as “Bradshaws”) from the middle of the relative stylistic sequence. We demonstrate that while one date suggests a minimum age of c. 17 ka for one motif, most of the dates support a hypothesis that these Gwion paintings were produced in a relatively narrow period around 12,000 years ago.


2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 251-257
Author(s):  
. Hartoyo ◽  
Sutrisno Koswara ◽  
. Sulassih

The objectives of this community service activity are to: 1) Increase knowledge and skills in processing banana chips through training for community groups in the Pesantren (Islamic Boarding School) of Syubbanul Yaum, Tenajar Village, and 2) Analyze the added value of banana chips processing. The activities were carried out during July–September 2019 (3 months) with several activities that began with preparation, training on making banana chips, and technical assistances. The results of the training activities showed that there were knowledge improvement of training participants in terms of: selection the quality of material (by 63.16), innovation in the form of banana chips (by 89.47), and innovation in the taste of banana chips (by 26.32). The skills of participants have been improved to apply innovation in the terms of form and flavor of banana chips. The innovations in the form of chips include; wasp nests, elongated, sloped, rounded, jagged and rounded jagged, while flavored innovations include; cheese, chocolate, green tea, palm sugar, spicy and savory. The ability of participants to make banana chips with a thickness of 1–2 mm was increased by 26.32 by using various shapes of knives. The result of value added analysis shows that the processing of banana chips can provide economic added value of IDR 8,000/kg with a value added ratio of 53.30% of the sales value. The profit of banana chips business reached IDR 5,200/kg with a profit ratio of 65%. There is, therefore, the processing of banana chips is a suitable business for community groups in managing Pesantren to foster the economic independence of Pesantren and village communities.


2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-77
Author(s):  
Masumi Hisano

Insects are rich in protein and thus are important substitute foods for many species of generalist feeders. This study reviews insectivory characteristics of the Japanese marten (Martes melampus) based on current literature. Across the 16 locations (14 studies) in the Japanese archipelago, a total of 80 different insects (including those only identified at genus, family, or order level) were listed as marten food, 26 of which were identified at the species level. The consumed insects were categorised by their locomotion types, and the Japanese martens exploited not only grounddwelling species, but also arboreal, flying, and underground-dwelling insects, taking advantage of their arboreality and ability of agile pursuit predation. Notably, immobile insects such as egg mass of Mantodea spp, as well as pupa/larvae of Vespula flaviceps and Polistes spp. from wasp nests were consumed by the Japanese marten in multiple study areas. This review shows dietary generalism (specifically ‘food exploitation generalism’) of the Japanese marten in terms of non-nutritive properties (i.e., locomotion ability of prey).


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