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Subfamily Eumeninae - Potter and Mason Wasps
Classification Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Hymenoptera (Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies)
No Taxon (Aculeata - Ants, Bees and Stinging Wasps)
Superfamily Vespoidea
Family Vespidae (Hornets, Yellowjackets; Paper, Potter, Mason, and Pollen Wasps; and Allies)
Subfamily Eumeninae (Potter and Mason Wasps)
Other Common Names Mason wasps - these species generally nest in pre-existing cavities in wood, rock, or other substrate. Mud may be used internally to separate cells but is not as dominant. Some species are known as keyhole wasps.
Potter wasps - these species generally build free-standing nests out of mud, often with a spherical mud envelope.
Explanation of Names Eumeninae Saussure, 1852
Numbers >260 spp. in 25 genera in our area (1), >170 genera total
Identification key to genera of the continental US & Canada in (3)
A few genera can be identified by the distinctive shape of their abdomen:
First two abdominal segments forming a tapered petiole linking abdomen and thorax: Eumenes, Zethus, Minixi, and Zeta.
Abdomen blunt where it meets thorax, with no obvious petiole. Large, common wasps, with bold pattern: Monobia
Habitat All habitats from northern boreal forests to the deserts of the southwest
Season Throughout the warm season, year-round in the south
Food Eumenines prey mainly upon moth larvae, although some take larvae of leaf-feeding beetles. Adults take nectar.
Life Cycle Most species nest in pre-existing cavities (e.g., old borings in wood, hollow stems, rock crevices) and use mud (less commonly sand) for partitions between brood cells ―thus 'mason wasps.' Some make nests in the ground (e.g., all Pterocheilus, Odynerus, many Euodynerus). Some ground-nesting species build mud turrets over the entrance ( O. dilectus, E. annulatus). 'Potter wasps' make free-standing nests of mud, e.g. Eumenes and Zeta.
Remarks Cleptoparasites and parasites of eumenine wasps include members of Chrysididae, Mutillidae, and Sarcophagidae as those most commonly reared from nests.
Works Cited 4. | Identification Atlas of the Vespidae (Hymenoptera, Aculeata) of the Northeastern Nearctic Region Matthias Buck, Stephen A. Marshall, and David K. B. Cheung. 2008. Biological Survey of Canada [Canadian Journal of Arthropod Identification]. | |
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