Official name
Synonyms
Spilomena beata [1]
Spilomena expectata
Spilomena exspectata
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CONTENTS
1. Distribution
2. Behaviour
3. Plant relations
4. Prey relations
5. Parasitic relations
6. Identification
1. DISTRIBUTION
Spilomena beata is a rare wasp in the Netherlands [2].
2. BEHAVIOUR
2.1. ACTIVITY
The species is active from May to half September [3].
2.2. DEVELOPMENT
Nest
The females built their nests in abandoned corridors in dead wood gnawed by beetles Anobium sp. (Anobiidae) [3,7], but gnaw their own nests in the pith of plant stems too [3,4,5,7,8,12].
The nesting corridors have a diameter of 1,0-1,4mm and a length of 3,5-6 mm [8].
The nest corridors can be constructed linear with the brood cells in a row, or branched with the brood cells located at the end of the corridor [12]. The cells are separated with by walls constructed of wood pulp [5] or a 0,2-7mm wedge-shaped pith plug [8]. Cells are provisioned with about 20 prey specimen [3,5].
Male and female cells are equal in size [8].
The nest is sealed with a plug of wood shreds that are tamped tight with the abdomen and glued with saliva [5,6,7].
Females find their nest using smell and as a result normally take a lot of time to find it after returning from the hunt, which is typical in the genus Spilomena [5,12]. They will scout around a large surface around the assumed nest position until they smelled it out using the antennae [5]
Nest locations may be hared with S. troglodytes [7].
2.3. BEE HOTEL
Females may use artificial nesting material and accept borehole of 1,5-2mm [3,7].
2.4. MATING
Spilomena beata develops two generation per year [3,5,6].
2.5. HUNT
Prey specimen are carried to the nest using their mandibles [4,7,12].
3. PLANT RELATIONS
3.1. WOOD
The following wood types are mentioned in literature as medium for the wasp to built her nests in:
| Adoxaceae | Sambucus (Elder) [12] |
| Fagaceae | Fagus – Fagus sylvatica (Beech) [7] |
| Rosaceae | Rubus (Blackberry) [5,6] |
| Scrophulariaceae | Buddleja [8] |
Twigs [4,6] and timber [6] may be used as well.
3.2. FOOD PLANTS
Males feed with honeydew liked from leaves.
The following plant species are mentioned in literature as food sources:
| Apicaceae | Falcaria [5,6] Pastinaca [5,6] Peucedanum – Peucedanum cervaria [13] |
Garden species
Our garden provides a number of these food plant. I have observer a Spilomena species foraging on Fennel (Foeniculum) but did not establish which one.
4. PREY RELATIONS
The species uses primarily the larvae of thrips (Thysanoptera) for her brood [3,4,5,6,9,12].
The following species and group occurring in the Netherlands [1] are mentioned in literature:
| Thysanoptera (Thrips) [4] | Taeniothrips [5,7] Thrips [5,7] |
Garden species
None of the mentioned prey species have yet been observed in our garden.
5. PARASITIC RELATIONS
The following species and groups occurring in the Netherlands [1] are mentioned in literature:
| – | – |
Parasitic species outside the Netherlands:
| Hymenoptera (Wespen) | Chalcidoidea (Bronswespen) Pteromalidae Lonchetron – Lonchetron fennicum [4] |
6. IDENTIFICATION
Length males: 2,5 – 3 mm
Length females: 2,5 – 3,5 mm
Genus
The genus Spilomena can be identified using the following characters:
1. Forewing: with two submarginal cells [9,10,11]
2. Forewing: submarginal cell 2 not petiolate [9,10,11]
3. Forewing: pterostigma large and almost semicircular [9,10,11]
4. Forewing: radial cell(lr) longer than pterostigma (ls) [9,10,11]
5. Forewing: radial cell tip sharp [9,10,11]
6. Forewing: with one discoidal cell [9,10,11]
7. Abdomen: first abdominal segment not petiolate [9,10,11]
8. Abdomen: entirely black [9,10,11]
1. Antenna with 12 segments [9,10,11]
2. Abdomen with 6 segments [9,10,11]
HEAD
1. Clypeus: evenly rounded [10,11] , without longitudinal groove [9,10,11]
2. Mandible: usually black-brwon [10,11]
3. Ratio distance between hind ocelli (POL) : distance hind ocellus to eye edge (OOL) = 1,4 – 2,0 (here ±1,4) [9,10,11]
4. Occiput: developed less strongly [9,10,11]
THORAX
1. Scutellum: frontal furrow narrow and without transverse carinae [9,10,11]
2. Mesonotum: apical edge without longitudinal grooves [10,11]
3. Mesopleuron: with clear fine longitudinal wrinkles [9]
3. Wings: veins brown [10,11]
4. Dorsal field propodeum limited by carina, without fine net-shaped wrinkles between the main sculpture [10,11]
ABDOMEN
- Tergite 6 with double bristle row [9,10,11]
1. Antenna with 13 segments [9,10,11]
2. Abdomen with 7 segments [9,10,11]
3. Face and clypeus yellow, at least the front edge yellow [9,10,11]
HEAD
1. Clypeus: apical edge with or without slight curve [10,11]
2. Clypeus: entirely or almost entirely yellow [9]
3. Mandible: distally with narrow red-brown edge [10,11]
4. Ratio distance between hind ocelli (POL) : distance hind ocellus to eye edge (OOL) = 1,4 – 2,0 [9,10,11]
5. Antenna: flag segments almost cylindrical [9,10,11]
6. Antenna: flag dark coloured, at most on inside more or less red-brown [9]
THORAX
1. Scutellum: frontal furrow narrow and without transverse carinae [9,10,11]
2. Dorsal field propodeum limited by carina, without fine net-shaped wrinkles between the main sculpture [9,10,11]
ABDOMEN
1. Aedoeagus apically pointed [10]
References
1 Nederlands Soortenregister2 Waarneming.nl
3 Peeters, T.M.J., C. van Achterberg, W.R.B. Heitmans, W.F. Klein, V. Lefeber, A.J. van Loon, A.A. Mabelis, H. Nieuwen-huijsen, M. Reemer, J. de Rond, J. Smit, H.H.W. Velthuis, 2004. De wespen en mieren van Nederland (Hymenoptera: Aculeata). – Nederlandse Fauna 6. Nationaal Natuurhistorisch Museum Naturalis, Leiden, knnv Uitgeverij, Utrecht & European Invertebrate Survey – Nederland, Leiden.
4 DANKS, Hugh V. Biology of some stem‐nesting aculeate Hymenoptera. Transactions of the Royal Entomological Society of London, 1971, 122.11: 323-395.
5 Blösch, M. (2000). Die Grabwespen Deutschlands – Lebens‐weise, Verhalten, Verbreitung. 71. Teil. In Dahl, F.: Die Tierwelt Deutschlands. Begr.: 1925. – Keltern (Goecke & Evers). – 480 S. 341 Farbfotos. ISBN 3‐931374‐26‐2 (hardcover). DM 98,–. Zool. Reihe, 78: 353-353. https://doi.org/10.1002/mmnz.20020780208
6 DOROW, WHO. 3.7 Hymenoptera: Aculeata (Stechimmen). Schönbuche. Zoologische Unter suchungen, 1990, 1992: 127-264.
7 WOYDAK, Horst. Hymenoptera Aculeata Westfalica Familia: Sphecidae (Grabwespen), 1996, 3-135.
8 DANKS, Hugh V. Biology of some stem‐nesting aculeate Hymenoptera. Transactions of the Royal Entomological Society of London, 1971, 122.11: 323-395.
9 KLEIN, Wim. De graafwespen van de Benelux. Jeugdbondsuitgeverij, Utrecht, 1996, 1-130. + KLEIN, Wim. De graafwespen van de Benelux: supplement. Jeugdbondsuitgeverij, 1999.
10 JACOBS, H. J (2007): Die Grabwespen Deutschlands Ampulicidae. Sphecidae, Crabronidae–Bestimmungsschlüssel in Blank, SM & Taeger, A (Hrsg): Die Tierwelt Deutschlands und der angrenzenden Meeresteile nach ihren Merkmalen und nach ihrer Lebensweise, Hymenoptera III–Keltern, Goecke & Evers, 79: 1-207.
11 Hermann Dollfuss, "Bestimmungsschlüssel der Grabwespen Nord- und Zentraleuropas (Hymenoptera, Sphecidae) mit speziellen Angaben zur Grabwespenfauna Österreichs", Publikation der Botanischen Arbeitsgemeinschaft am O.Ö.Landesmuseum Linz, LINZ, 20. Dezember 1991
12 LOMHOLDT, O. 1975-1976; 1984 (2. Auflage). The Sphecidae (Hymenoptera) of Fennoscandia and Denmark. Fauna Entomologica Scandinavica, 4.1: 2.
13 BITSCH, Jacques; LECLERCQ, Jean. Hyménoptères Sphecidae d'Europe occidentale. Fédération française des sociétés de sciences naturelles, 1993.
