Biosystematic Studies of Ceylonese Wasps, XIX: Natural History Notes in SeveralFamilies (Hymenoptera: Eumenidae, Vespidae, Pompilidae, and Crabronidae)

摘要

Behavioral, ecological, and distributional data are provided for 40 species ofSri Lankan wasps in the families Eumenidae, Vespidae, Pompilidae, and Crabronidae. All species are solitary except the subsocial vespid, Eustenogaster eximia (Bingham), which rarely exhibits primitive eusociality. Behavioral data on Eumenidae, Pompilidae, and Crabronidae may include the following aspects: nest construction and architecture; prey hunting or capture; prey transport to nest; natural enemies; and adult behavior. The range of each species is given as well as detailed locality records of its occurrence, insofar as possible, in Sri Lanka. Additional data include the ecological zone(s) in which each species is found in Sri Lanka, and the ranges in altitude and average annual rainfall. The text is supplemented by a map delineating the ecological zones and average annual rainfall, as well as photographs of the nests of a few species, and scanning electron micrographs of cell wall composition and cocoon fabric in E. eximia.