Stigmus americanus

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Stigmus americanus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Crabronidae
Genus: Stigmus
Species:
S. americanus
Binomial name
Stigmus americanus
Packard, 1867
Synonyms[1]
  • Stigmus fraternus coloradensis Rohwer, 1911
  • Stigmus lucidus Rohwer, 1909

Stigmus americanus is a species of aphid wasp in the family Crabronidae.[1][2][3][4] It is found in North America.[1]

Stigmus americanus nest in twigs of certain trees and shrubs, including Erythrina, Paeonia, Sambucus, Chionanthus, Syringa, Prunus, Polyphorus, and Sassafras. They frequently utilize pre-existing cavities, but also excavate their own nests.

A Stigmus americanus wasp provisions its nest with paralyzed aphids, and places its eggs on the thoracic ventor and abdomen of the aphids in its nest. When an egg hatches, the larva feeds on the paralyzed aphid and eventually emerges from the aphid shell as an adult wasp.

The cuckoo wasps Omalus iridescens and O. purpuratus parasitize Stigmus americanus (along some other aphid wasps) by laying eggs in live aphids at a hunting site of Stigmus americanus, which then paralyzes the aphids and moves them to its nest along with the embedded eggs.[5][6][4]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Stigmus americanus Report". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 2018-05-04.
  2. ^ "Stigmus americanus species details". Catalogue of Life. Retrieved 2018-05-04.
  3. ^ "Stigmus americanus". GBIF. Retrieved 2018-05-04.
  4. ^ a b "Stigmus americanus Species Information". BugGuide.net. Retrieved 2018-05-04.
  5. ^ Patrick Winterhagen (2015). "Strategy for sneaking into a host's home: The cuckoo wasp Omalus biaccinctus (Hymenoptera: Chrysididae) inserts its eggs into living aphids that are the prey of its host". European Journal of Entomology. 112 (3): 557–559. doi:10.14411/eje.2015.064.
  6. ^ Bohart, Richard M.; Menke, Arnold S. (1976). Sphecid Wasps of the World: A Generic Revision. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0520023185.