The Thermoregulatory Behavior of Nectar Foraging Polistine Wasps (Polistes dominula and Polistes gallicus) in Different Climate Conditions

Kovac, Helmut; Käfer, Helmut; Stabentheiner, Anton

doi:10.3390/insects10070187

Cited by 12 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…Ref. 69,70] can facilitate the measurement of reflectance and its effects on rates of temperature change of a large number of insects (intra-specifically and inter-specifically) through space and time, and therefore enhance our understanding of evolutionary relationships between color and climate at fine scales. A combination of longterm field surveys (or museum records), genetic data, laboratory controlled experiments and insect field performance provides great promise to understand the value of color variation as a mediator of climate change effects on insects.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The evolution of insect body coloration under changing climates

Clusella‐Trullas

Nielsen

2020

Current Opinion in Insect Science

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Insects have been influential models in research on color variation, its evolutionary drivers and the mechanistic basis of such variation. More recently, several studies have indicated that insect color is responding to rapid climate change. However, it remains challenging to ascertain drivers of color variation among populations and species, and across space and time, as multiple biotic and abiotic factors can interact and mediate color change. Here, we describe some of the challenges and recent advances made in this field. First, we outline the main alternative hypotheses that exist for insect color variation in relation to climatic factors. Second, we review the existing evidence for contemporary adaptive evolution of insect color in response to climate change and then discuss factors that can promote or hinder the evolution of color in response to climate change. Finally, we propose future directions and highlight gaps in this research field. Pigments and structures producing insect color can vary concurrently or independently, and may evolve at different rates, with poorly understood effects on gene frequencies and fitness. Disentangling multiple competing hypotheses explaining insect coloration should be key to assign color variation as an evolutionary response to climate change.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The evolution of insect body coloration under changing climates

Clusella‐Trullas

Nielsen

2020

Current Opinion in Insect Science

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“…The number of cells per nest and number of adult wasps were recorded before and after the experiment. Research has found temperature to have an important effect on P. dominula nest growth (Höcherl and Tautz 2015) and foraging (Weiner et al 2011), with wasps failing to forage for food at temperatures below 20°C (Kovac et al 2019). To compare temperatures between habitats, HOBO Pendant UA-001-08 temperature data loggers were placed within each site on the nest boxes, logging the temperature every 10 min.…”

Section: Translocation Of P Dominula Nestsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nesting Ecology and Colony Survival of Two Invasive Polistes Wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in New Zealand

McGruddy

Howse

Haywood

et al. 2021

Environmental Entomology

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We examined the abundance, nesting ecology, and colony survival of two invasive species of paper wasp, Polistes dominula Christ (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) and Polistes chinensis Pérez (Hymenoptera: Vespidae), within their invaded range in New Zealand. The more recent invader, P. dominula, exhibited a strong habitat preference, reaching the highest abundances within suburban areas with an average of 87.4 wasps per 1,000 m2. Coastal habitats were also found to be suitable environments for P. dominula, although wasp abundance in these areas was comparatively lower than suburban sites at 26.5 wasps per 1,000 m2. Although P. chinensis were observed to build more nests in coastal habitats, this was not reflected in the abundance of adult wasps in these areas. Nests of P. dominula were larger and more productive, likely a result of the multiple founding and earlier emergence of workers compared to P. chinensis. Both species exhibited significant differences in nest survival, with P. dominula observed to have a higher colony survival rate, particularly in suburban habitats where this species utilized man-made substrates as nesting sites. Neither species nested within forest sites and translocated nests of P. dominula failed to thrive within forest habitats. Findings of this research suggest that P. dominula will not pose a threat to species inhabiting forested areas. Instead, biodiversity managers should focus their efforts on suburban and coastal environments as native species in these areas will require the greatest protection.

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“…The number of cells per nest and the number of adult wasps were recorded before and after the experiment. Research has found temperature to have an important effect on Polistes nest growth (Höcherl & Tautz, 2015) and foraging (Weiner et al, 2011), with wasps failing to forage for food at temperatures below 20°C (Kovac et al, 2019). To compare temperatures between habitats, HOBO Pendant® UA-001-08 temperature data loggers were placed within each site on the nest boxes.…”

Section: Translocation Of P Dominula Nestsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The nesting ecology, habitat preference, abundance and impacts of Polistes dominula in New Zealand

McGruddy¹

2021

Preprint

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Introduced wasps can have significant impacts on communities within their newly invaded range. A recent wasp introduction to New Zealand is the European paper wasp, Polistes dominula Christ, which was first observed in the Nelson-Tasman region in 2016. The ecology and behaviour of P. dominula was investigated, as well as the direct and indirect impacts of this wasp on local communities in Nelson. Aspects of nesting behaviour, habitat preference and abundance were studied with the intent to inform management decisions. The abundance and colony survival of P. dominula was greatest in suburban areas, where nests were predominantly built within anthropogenic structures. Colony survival of P. dominula was comparatively higher than for colonies of the longer established exotic congener Polistes chinensis Pérez. Neither Polistes species were found to nest within native or exotic forest sites, with translocated colonies of P. dominula unsuccessful within forest habitats. As a species that originates from a warmer climate, the lower temperatures in forests are likely a contributor to the inability of P. dominula to thrive in these areas. The impacts that newly invasive predators have on communities within their invaded range are often poorly understood. Following the arrival of P. dominula, I show data indicating that there have been substantial declines in the abundance of several local butterfly species in Nelson. The monarch butterfly, Danaus plexippus Linnaeus was one of the species reported by residents to be in population decline. Field experiments found P. dominula to be a major cause of monarch caterpillar mortality. Caterpillar survival was the lowest in suburban areas, where the abundance of P. dominula was highest. Early instar caterpillars had comparatively higher mortality rates than late instar caterpillars, as the defensive behaviour of larger caterpillars had greater success against these wasps. Whilst P. dominula was the main driver behind caterpillar mortality throughout my experiments, the discovery of caterpillars by wasps appeared to happen by chance through direct contact between the wasp and their prey. There was also no evidence of nestmate recruitment by foraging wasps to sites where caterpillars were found. Predation has the capacity to not only impact prey populations, but through the suppression of herbivory, plants can indirectly benefit from the presence of predators. The presence of P. dominula was found to have strong, cascading effects on the milkweed host and food plant of D. plexippus. Milkweed fitness in areas populated by P. dominula was substantially greater than the fitness of plants in areas without this invasive predator. Plant growth and reproduction of milkweeds placed in areas where P. dominula were present, and able to predate upon caterpillars, were found to exhibit a similar amount of growth and flower production as netted control plants which excluded monarch caterpillars completely. The outcomes of this experiment suggest that P. dominula is strongly suppressing these herbivorous caterpillars. Overall, this thesis provides insight into the behaviour and ecology of P. dominula in New Zealand. Findings of this research suggest that this newly invasive wasp is having detrimental effects on local communities and that P. dominula should be controlled to reduce the impacts of this wasp on New Zealand’s ecosystems. Knowledge obtained in this study can direct conservation management strategies and aid in the development of effective control methods.

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The Thermoregulatory Behavior of Nectar Foraging Polistine Wasps (Polistes dominula and Polistes gallicus) in Different Climate Conditions

Cited by 12 publications

References 23 publications

The evolution of insect body coloration under changing climates

The evolution of insect body coloration under changing climates

Nesting Ecology and Colony Survival of Two Invasive Polistes Wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in New Zealand

The nesting ecology, habitat preference, abundance and impacts of Polistes dominula in New Zealand

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