Arthropods • Earth.com

Central American paper wasp

(Apoica pallens)

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Description

The Central American paper wasp (Apoica pallens) is a nocturnal eusocial wasp (family Vespidae). It is famous for its swarm based emigration behavior, and is native to the lowlands of Central and northern South America. This species has developed special night vision adaptations to facilitate their night-time swarming and foraging behavior and has important medicinal properties for the Pankararú people of Brazil. Apoica pallens is pale yellow in color. Like other species found within the Epiponini, there is morphological caste differentiation between workers and queens. In Apoica pallens, queens and workers are usually about the same total size, but queens tend to be smaller than workers anteriorly and significantly larger posteriorly. This differentiation is thought to be the result of differences in ovary development. Nests of Apoica have no enclosing envelope and are composed of a single comb that hangs under the branch. The large nests have a distinctive appearance similar to a straw hat or basket. Apoica pallens is part of the tribe Epiponini, a group including paper wasps found in neotropical regions. Apoica is one of the basal genera in the tribe. The species is most closely related to Apoica flavissima. Apoica pallens was described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1804. Apoica pallens is best known for its unique swarm founding behavior, in which the adult population of a colony abandons an old nest and emigrates to a new site. This has been observed for several reasons. Firstly, as part of normal colony reproduction. And secondly, in response to severe disturbance or destruction of the original nest. Additionally, nest abandonment is sometimes correlated with changing climates, and in the case of Apoica pallens, has been observed more frequently during the dry season. Males follow swarm emigrations and may remain with the newly created colony for the following weeks. Epiponini are either permanently polygynous or primarily polygynous. In the latter case, queen numbers decrease during the colony cycle which can result in monogyny. Therefore, kinship is considered an important theory for explaining cooperation within the Epiponini tribe. Apoica pallens is a caste species with morphological differentiation between females. These castes are classified as workers and queens, and this morphological distinction is based on the size of ovaries. This special morphology contributes to the reproductive abilities of the queens.

Taxonomic tree:

Domain:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum:
Class: Insecta
Order:Hymenoptera
Family:Vespidae
Genus:Apoica
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