Love+Don't+Wasp+a+Thing

=**Wasps** (Vespidae)=

Taxonomy
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Arthropoda Class: Insecta Order: Hymenoptera Suborder: Apocrita Wasps are anything that fall under the suborder Apocrita but are neither Bees nor Ants. A popular definition of the term wasp is any member of the Vespidae family (5). Vespidae is broken into six subgroups and comprises about 4,500 species.

The following wasps are likely to be found in Vermont ([|2]):
Yellow Jackets Bald-faced hornets Cicada Killers Common Thread Waisted Wasps Five-Banded Tiphiid Wasp Horntail Wasp Ichneumon Wasp Potter Wasp American Pelecinid Wasp

Physical Description
There are more than 30,000 species of wasps worldwide([|3]). About 1,000 of those are social and the rest are solitary([|1]). Generally Wasps will possess compound antennae with twelve or thirteen segments, in addition they have biting mouth parts. A distinctive identifier is their petiole waist attaching their abdomen to their thorax. Females possess a modified ovipositor equipped with venom glands for stinging. In addition the vast majority of wasps have two sets of wings and very few hairs on their body. With a few exceptions wasps are either parasitic or predatory ([|1]). Coloration can vary from black and white to colorful and metallic (see Fig 3. The Cuckoo Wasp). Wasps can be further separated between social and solitary wasps. Both of these groups remain haplodiplo, meaning females have 2n chromosomes while males have n chromosomes.

Habitat
Wasps are spread throughout all six habitable continents. Their habitats are varied but almost all of them build a nest. Non nest building wasps generally have an alternative to their own nest such as laying it's egg inside the nest of another. Nests constructed by wasps are either dug into the ground or built out of a papery substance. This papery substance is actually chewed wood fiber mixed with wasp saliva and then regurgitated ([|3]). Occasionally solitary wasps will take control of nests built by others, sometimes with the occupants still inside ([|4]).

Influence on the ecosystem
Despite no feeding on pollen, a few species of wasps serve the role of pollinator. The best example of this role the fig wasp. Fig trees depend on these wasps to transport pollen between trees ([|6]). This is an example of extreme co-evolved mutualism. Besides these few exceptions wasps are mostly parasitic, they serve beneficial roles to their respective biospheres by culling the numbers of potentially harmful species. Adult wasps do not however eat their prey, they are generally not predators. Wasps will lay eggs on or inside of their targets, giving their young an ample food source until they pupate. This is why the majority of wasps are parasitoids and not predators ([|3]). In order to increase their efficiency, social wasps have developed methods of communication between individuals. Unfortunately wasps do not dance like Bees do, they only use sound. They will use a vast array of different methods including clicking their mandibles, scraping their wings together, or tapping body parts on resonant substrates([|7]).

Human Hornet relations
Wasps have a well deserved reputation as pests with a painful sting. There are many poisons on the market to kill and destroy wasp nests. If allergic wasps can even be dangerous. Some of the largest species can even be dangerous to nonallergic humans. Giant Asian Hornets have made the news recently after killing dozens of people in China ([|8]) It is estimated that 42 people have been killed in attacks by these hornets. Because of their sheer size and numbers they can inject a human with enough venom to cause kidney failure. These same wasps also have a devastating effect on other species. Giant Asian Hornets are known to attack honey bee colonies en mass, their size and armor makes they nearly impervious to the stings of the smaller honey bees. Humans have also learned to use hornets and wasps as pest control. The New Zealand government is considering introducing Cotesia urabae in several areas in New Zealand to reduce the numbers of Uraba lugens (Lepidoptera) that have grown out of control ([|9]).

By L. Lalire

(5) Lopez-Osorio, Federico . "Field Zoology Lecture." UVM, Burlington. 8 Nov. 2013. Lecture.
(6) Suleman, N., S. Raja, and S. Compton. "Parasitism of a Pollinator Fig Wasp: Mortalities Are Higher in Figs with More Pollinators, but Are Not Related to Local Densities of Figs." //ECOLOGICAL ENTOMOLOGY// 38.5 (2013): 478-84. Print.

(7) Hunt, JH, and F. Richard. "Intracolony Vibroacoustic Communication in Social Insects." //INSECTES SOCIAUX// 60.4 (2013): 403-17. //Web of Science//. Web. 8 Nov. 2013. .

(8) Rivera, Gloria. "Tracking Giant Hornets That Have Killed at Least 42 People." News segment. //ABC News//. N.p., 9 Oct. 2013. Web. 8 Nov. 2013. .

(9) Rowbottom, R., G. Allen, P. Walker, and L. Berndt. "Phenology, Synchrony and Host Range of the Tasmanian Population of Cotesia Urabae Introduced into New Zealand for the Biocontrol of Uraba Lugens." //BIOCONTROL// 58.5 (2013): 625-33. //Web of Science//. Web. 8 Nov. 2013. .

Image Citations
1. A Yellow Jacket. Digital image. //News FIrst //. N.p., Mar. 2013. Web. 7 Nov. 2013. .

2. //Basic Morphology of a Female Wasp //. Digital image. //Wikipedia //. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Nov. 2013. .

//3. Cuckoo Wasp (Hedychrum Rutilans) Collage //<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16px;">. Digital image. //<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16px;">Animal Picture Archive //<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16px;">. N.p., 2007. Web. 7 Nov. 2013. <http://animal.memozee.com/view.php?tid=3&did=26178&lang=kr>.