Sphecid wasps, Passaloecus cuspidatus were observed gathering fresh pine resin (Pinus strobus) which they used for creating partitions and closures in their nests. Based upon measurements taken of the cells, and an estimate of the load carried by the wasps, the number of collecting trips made by the wasps was correlated with the quantity of resin contained within the nest partitions and closures

Fricke, John M

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Economics of Cell Partitions And Closures Produced by \u3ci\u3ePassaloecus Cuspidatus (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae)

Valparaiso University

The Great Lakes Entomologist Volume 28 Numbers 3 & 4 -- Fall/Winter 1995 Numbers 3 & 4 -- Fall/Winter 1995 Article 6 January 1995 Economics of Cell Partitions And Closures Produced by Passaloecus Cuspidatus (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae) John M. Fricke Concordia College Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.valpo.edu/tgle  Part of the Entomology Commons Recommended Citation Fricke, John M. 1995. "Economics of Cell Partitions And Closures Produced by Passaloecus Cuspidatus (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae)," The Great Lakes Entomologist, vol 28 (3) Available at: https://scholar.valpo.edu/tgle/vol28/iss3/6 This Peer-Review Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of Biology at ValpoScholar. It has been accepted for inclusion in The Great Lakes Entomologist by an authorized administrator of ValpoScholar. For more information, please contact a ValpoScholar staff member at scholar@valpo.edu. 1995 THE GREAT LAKES ENTOMOLOGIST 221 ECONOMICS OF CEll PARTITIONS AI~D CLOSURES PRODUCED BY PA55ALOECU5 CU5PIDATU5 !HYMENOPTERA: SPHECIDAE) John M. Fricke1 ABSTRACT Sphecid wasps, Passaloecus cuspidatus were observed gathering fresh pine resin (Pinus strobus) which they used for creating partitions and closures in their nests. Based upon measurements taken of the cells, and an estimate of the load carried by the wasps, the number of collecting trips made by the wasps was correlated with the quantity of resin contained within the nest partitions and closures. Passaloecus cupsidatus Smith is a small pemphredonine sphecid wasp that utilizes pre-existing tunnels and trap nests for its nests, which have cellswithin arranged linearly, each separated by a thin partition of pine resin. A final closure of the nest is also constructed of resin. Female wasps, therefore, must collect the resin from recently-oozing wounds on coniferous trees. This study examines the relationship between the amou t of resin contained within the nest and the number of trips required to collect the resin. Resin gathering activity of P. cuspidatus was observed at resin flows on Pinus strobus on 17 June 1987 in Ann Arbor, Michigan (see Fricke, 1992). Large fence staples (1.5 in) had been used to secure trap nest bundle carriers (described previously in Fricke, 1991) to trunks oftrees selected as trap-nest­ing stations. Resin flows were produced in response to fence-staple wounds. Passaloecus cuspidatus selected resin flows with dimensions 9 by 4 mm. The wasp's mandibles were used in a scissors-like fashion to excise a drop of resin with a diameter the width ofthe wasp's head. When separation of a resin drop was nearly complete, the wasp backed directly away from the resin flow. A thin strand ofresin, connecting the resin drop to the flow, was drawn into the excised drop by lateral and circular motions of the wasp's head. Any remain­ing remnant of the resin strand was cut off by a continued backward move­ment combined with an abrupt turning to the left or right. Twenty-two resin gathering trips were observed between 0947 and 1142 hr. Resin drops were carried on the ventral surface of the mandibles. Three separate resin flows were used during these resin gathering activi­ties. Resin flow (I) was visited repeatedly and the wasp returned directly to the resin flow, landing within a few em of the flow and approaching it directly. After a number of resin gathering trips, the remaining portion of he resin flow was t o small, or of improper consistency, and was abandoned as a resin source. The pine trunk was searched for anot r appropriate resin flow and resin gathering resumed. Resin flow (II) was then used repeatedly as a resin source. lNaturaI Science and Mathematics Division, Concordia College, Ann Arbor, MI 48108. 1Fricke: Economics of Cell Partitions And Closures Produced by <i>PassaloePublished by ValpoScholar, 1995222 THE GREAT LAKES ENTOMOLOGIST Vol. 28, No.3 &4 140 130 120 110 100 ('; 90 c Q) 	 80 :::s C" 	70 ~ lJ.. 	 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 D Partition • Closure .1 .2 .3.4.5 2 3 4 5 10 Thickness (mm) Figure 1. Thickness of r in partitions and closures in Pa saloecus cuspidatus trap nests. After three or four trips to resin flow (II) the wasp made a trip to resin flow (I), explored the resin mass, and returned to resin gathering at flow (II). Resin gathering was again observed 18 June (eight trips, 1631-1713 hr) and 24 July (11 trips between 0900 and 1000 hr, with no elapsed time recorded). Ringing of trap nest bore openings was also observed and the following ac­tion pattern was noted. Passaloecus cuspidatus landed at or within a few cen­timeters of the trap nest opening, entered head first, exited and re- ntered gaster first. The wasp then appeared at the nest opening and with her mandibles spread a thin layer of resin on the face of trap nest at the margin of the opening. Krombein (1967) noted that resin partitions were usually 0.25 and occa­sionally 4.0 mm thick, while closures, anging from 0.25 to 4.0 mm, were usu­ally 1.0 mm thick. Vincent (1978) noted that 4 drops of esin were used for nest closures. Data from my studies of 1987 were examined to det rmine the variability of partition and closure dimensions, their volumes, and the ener­getics of resin gathering. It was noted during r sin gathering described above that an excised drop of resin had a diameter approximately equal to the width of the wasp's head. Given a diameter of 1.5 mm, a resin drop carried by P. cus­pidatus has a volume of L 77 mm3. The thickness of resin partitions of 295 pro­visioned cells ranged from 0.1 to 5.0 mm in trap nests with bore diameters 2.4 2The Great Lakes Entomologist, Vol. 28, No. 3 [1995], Art. 6https://scholar.valpo.edu/tgle/vol28/iss3/61995 THE GREAT LAKES ENTOMOLOGIST 223 to 6.4 mm. Median and modal partition thicknesses were 0.5 mm; the ean partition thickness was 0.66 mm. Seventy-one closures had thicknesses rang­ing from 0.25 to 4.0 mm with a mean of 1.69 mm. Based upon the bore diameters and thicknesses indicated above, the vol­ume of resin required for partitions and closures ranged from 1.13 mm3 to 62.83 mms. The volumes of resin required for partitions nd closures in bores most frequently used by P. cuspidatus are respectively: 3.2 mm - 5.31 and 13.59; 4.0 mm - 8.29 and 21.24; and 4.8 mm - 11.94 and 30.58 mm3• Given a volume of 1.77 mm3 per resin drop, the numbers of resin gathering trips for partitions and closures for these respective bores are: 3.2 mm -3 and 7.68 (8); 4.0 mm - 4.68 (5) and 12.0; 4.8 mm - 6.75 (7) and 17.28 (18). These data are rather conservative since they have not taken into consid­eration the foundations for closures or partitions. Foundations, consisting of a resin ring on the wall of the trap nest bore, have base widths greater than that of their respective partition or closure. Resin partitions, closures, and their respective foundations, represent a significant energy investment. Resin volumes and bore diameters across which resin must be drawn possibly con­tribute to the upper limits of the bore diameters used by P. cuspidatus. The distribution of partition and closure thicknesses from P. cuspidatus trap nests are given in Figure 1. LITERATURE CITED Fricke, J. M. 1991. A trap-nest design for small trap-nesting Hymenoptera. Great Lakes Entomol. 24:121-122. 1992. Influence of tree species on frequency of trap-nest use by Passaloecus (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae). Great Lakes Eiltomol. 25:51-53. Krombein, K V. 1967. Trap-nesting wasps and bees: life histories, nests, and associates. Smithsonian Press, Washington DC. vi + 570 pp. Vincent, D. L. 1978. A Revision of the genus Passaloecus (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae) in America north of Mexico. Wasmann J. BioI. 36:127-198. 3Fricke: Economics of Cell Partitions And Closures Produced by <i>PassaloePublished by ValpoScholar, 1995

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Economics of Cell Partitions And Closures Produced by \u3ci\u3ePassaloecus Cuspidatus (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae)

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