Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Chartergus arizonaensis Cameron 1907
Range
s. AZ, c. TX to Panama -
Map (Sugden & McAllen 1994)
(1)
two AZ records, both from Nogales, Santa Cruz Co., one from ca. 1907 (Cameron, 1907) and the second record from 2017 (BG data)
current northern-most records from
Berry Springs Park and Preserve in Williamson Co. near the city of Georgetown, Texas as of 2020.
(2)Habitat
Occurs in all but the driest habitats
(3)
Nest placement is in the midcanopy of a tree or shrub from 1 to 9 m above ground level. Nests are sparse and difficult to find in native brush but relatively common in suburban settings where they are easily spotted in deciduous trees in winter. (Sugden & McAllen 1994)
Food
Larvae feed on honey
(3), and probably also pollen; this is unusual for vespids.
Life Cycle
Eusocial, with worker and reproductive castes. More than one queen per hive, and there are females present with ovaries intermediate in size between workers and queens. Form large colonies by swarming (coordinated groups of queens and workers). Store honey, but do not cap cells, as do bees. Nests are perennial, built in low trees, with as many as 50,000 cells.
(4)(5) Remarks
One of the very few insects other than bees to produce and store honey.
"They are docile a lot, but then they can explode, attacking en masse." (Joan Strassmann, pers. comm. to MAQ)
nests can be surprisingly large. Frank A. Eischen (pers. comm. to MAQ, July 2007) reported finding occupied nests as long as about three feet.
See Also
Pachodynerus nasidens (Eumeninae) - the first metasomal segment is wider, the second has punctation throughout. Range: s. TX, s. FL (BG data)
Pachodynerus pulverulentus (Eumeninae) - the first metasomal segment is wider, the second has punctation only at the posterior margin. Range: CA to NV & TX
Hoplitimyia mutabilis (Syrphidae) - as a fly, has the hind wings modified as halteres. Range: AZ, TX-FL
Print References
Cameron, P. 1907. On some North American species of
Chartergus. Invertebrata Pacifica 1: 181-183. (
Full Text)
Hastings, M.D., D.C. Queller, F. Eischen & J.E. Strassmann. 1998. Kin selection, relatedness and worker control of reproduction in a large-colony epiponine wasp, Brachygastra mellifica. Behavioral Ecology, 9(6): 573-581.
Hogue, C. 1993. Latin American Insects and Entomology. University of California Press, Berkeley. xiv + 594 pp.
(3)
Naumann, M.G. 1968. A revision of the genus
Brachygastra (Hymenoptera: Vespidae). U. Kansas Sci. Bull. 47: 929-1003. (
Full Text)
Schwarz, H.F. 1929. Honey wasps. Natural History, 29(4): 421-426.
Sugden, E.A. and R.L. McAllen. 1994. Observations on foraging, population and nest biology of the Mexican honey wasp,
Brachygastra mellifica (Say) in Texas (Vespidae: Polybiinae). Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 67(2): 141-155. (
JSTOR)
