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Vespula_germanica_Charles_Griffiths

Vespula Thomson

(Life: Kingdom: Metazoa (animals); Phylum: Arthropoda; Class: Hexapoda; Order: Hymenoptera; Superfamily: Vespoidea; Family: Vespidae; Subfamily: Vespinae)

Vespula Thomson,1869
 

Vespula germanica (Fabricius,1793)

Distribution

Palaearctic. Introduced into South Africa in 1975.

Biology

 Social, constructing concealed communal paper nests often under the ground. Larvae are fed on chewed-up, soft-bodied insects such as caterpillars.

References

Tribe, G.D. & Richardson, D.M. 1994. The European wasp, Vespula germanica (Fabricius) (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in southern Africa and its potential Distribution as predicted by ecoclimatic matching. African Entomology 2: 1-6.

Whitehead, V.B. & Prins, A.J. 1975. The European wasp, Vespula germanica (F.), in the Cape Peninsula. Journal of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa 38: 39–42.

Credits

Photograph © Charles Griffiths (University of Cape Town)

Web author Simon van Noort (Iziko South African Museum)

Copyright 2004-2012 Iziko Museums

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