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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies (Hymenoptera) » Aculeata - Bees, Ants, and other Stinging Wasps » Vespoidea » Ants (Formicidae) » Formicinae » False Honey Ants (Prenolepis) » False Honey Ant (Prenolepis imparis)
Photo#152155
Braconid wasp and aphid mummies - Prenolepis imparis
Copyright © 2007 StevenBren

Braconid wasp and aphid mummies - Prenolepis imparis
Nashville, Davidson County, Tennessee, USA
October 14, 2007
These aphids and their ant farmers are on a lily pad. The two brown aphids at the upper left have perfectly round openings being cut into their "mummies". The question is whether the braconid wasp that the ant on the left is examining is a newly hatched one from other mummies not pictured, or is it one looking to lay eggs in a new aphid? I have yet to catch one emerging.
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Contributed by StevenBren on 15 October, 2007 - 9:15pm
Last updated 16 March, 2008 - 2:02pm

Very good question...
but very difficult to answer conclusively. Indeed, this imago seems to be interested by the small Aphid near it, being in turn investigated while investigating. BTW, the "farmers" are False Honey Ants, Prenolepis imparis, workers. The one examining the Aphidiine Braconid looks quite unconscious this is an alien rater than an Aphid: the parasite must mimic cuticular chemicals of its Aphid hosts.
Also interesting is the swollen, subspherical, outline of the mummies compared with live Aphid individuals.
… Richard Vernier, 16 October, 2007 - 11:07am login or register to post comments

 
Thanks
for the interesting comment and IDs Richard. I think you may be right about the ant not being able to identify the wasp as a predator to its flock. What I find interesting is the perfectly round escape hatch that the wasp cuts. If today's light rain hasn't disturbed this crowd too much, I'll see if I can catch a wasp emerging.
… StevenBren, 16 October, 2007 - 11:37am login or register to post comments

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