The nesting behavior of Trachypus petiolatus is described from central Panamá. Females nested within aggregations in bare soil; they re-used nests from a prior generation, and provisioned their nests with small bees, mainly Apidae and Halictidae. These nests had a communal social organization among resident females, and also included one or more males. At least some males left the nest in the morning on a daily basis, and then returned later in the day. Based on limited nest excavations, we did not observe any parasitized cells, which may be associated with communal nesting.
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1 October 2004
Use of Communal Nests by Male and Female Trachypus petiolatus (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae)
William T. Wcislo,
Hermógenes Fernández-Marín,
Juan Carlos Di Trani
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Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society
Vol. 77 • No. 4
October 2004
Vol. 77 • No. 4
October 2004
communal nesting
male behavior
parasites
social tolerance