Ancistrocerus nigricornis
| Ancistrocerus nigricornis | |
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| Ancistrocerus nigricornis | |
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| Species: | A. nigricornis
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| Ancistrocerus nigricornis (Curtis, 1826)
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Ancistrocerus nigricornis is a species of potter wasp.[1]
Distribution
This species is present in most of Europe and in the East Palearctic ecozone, in the Near East, in North Africa and in the Oriental ecozone.[2][3]
Habitat
These potter wasps live in wet meadows,[4] in open landscapes, sometimes in garden and in areas where are present its feeding and preferred nesting sites.[3]
Description
Ancistrocerus nigricornis can reach a length of 6–10 millimetres (0.24–0.39 in) in males, of 9–13 millimetres (0.35–0.51 in) in females. [4] These medium-sized solitary wasps are yellow and black, with brown hairs on thorax, small spots at the base of the front wings and wing stigma.[5]
Metasomal terga III–IV show apical bands. In the females the spot between antennal socket and eye is absent.[6]
Biology
This species has a single annual generation (univoltine). Adults emerge in late summer. Males can be seen from June until September,[4] while females have been recorded from February to October. After mating occurs the males die and the females overwinter and reappear in the spring.[3] As adults, they eat plant juices, honeydew larvae and nectar of various flowers, mainly wild angelica (Angelica sylvestris),[4] hogweed (Heracleum), blackbery (Rubus fruticosus), nightshades (Solanaceae), goldenrod (Solidago) and thistle.[3]
Nest building occurs during the spring and early summer. These nest consists of holes in wood or tubes, commonly in elder and bram blestems, with clay partitions. These potter wasps lay an egg in each cell where they put various paralysed small caterpillars of micromoths, mainly Tortricidae. When the eggs hatch the larvae consume the preys.[3]
Bibliography
- Antonio Giordani Soika (1970) Boll.Mus.Civ.Stor.nat.Venezia Contributo alla conoscenza degli Eumenidi del Medio Oriente. Missione Giordani Soika in Iran 1965, III., Volume: 20-21 Pages: 27-183
- Horst-Günter Woydak (2001) Natur und Heimat Die solitären Faltenwespen: Eumenidae (Lehmwespen) und Masaridae (Honigwespen im Westfälischen Museum für Naturkunde Münster, Volume: 61 Pages: 85-95
- Michael E. Archer (2002) Yorkshir Naturalists Union The wasps, ants and bees (Hymenoptera: aculeata) of Watsonian Yorkshir, Pages: 1-200
- Michael Kuhlmann (2002) NachrBl.bayer.Ent. Struktur der Wildbienen- und Wespenzönosen ausgewählter Waldstandorte, Volume: 51 Pages: 61-74
- Volker Haeseler (2003) Oldenburger Jb. Ameisen, Wespen und Bienen der Weserinsel Harriersand bei Bremen, Volume: 103 Pages: 333-363
- ZOBODAT: Zoological-Botanical Database (Vespoidea). Gusenleitner J., 2006-07-20
References
- ^ Catalogue of life
- ^ Fauna europaea
- ^ a b c d e Bees, Wasps & Ants Recording Society
- ^ a b c d Commanster[permanent dead link]
- ^ Ispot Nature
- ^ Ju You,1 Bin Chen, and Ting-jing Li Two new species of the genus Ancistrocerus Wesmael (Hymenoptera, Vespidae, Eumeninae) from China, with a key to the Oriental species
