title: Intraspecific defense: advantage of social cooperation among paper wasp foundresses.
abstract: Foundress associations and high frequencies of conspecific nest usurpation are most common where densities of Polistes metricus are high. Here nest usurpation occurs primarily in single-foundress colonies resulting in multiple-foundress colonies having significantly greater productivities than single-foundress colonies. This is not true at low densities. Conspecific pressures and not predation or parasitism provide an advantage to cooperating wasp foundresses in P. metricus.
authors.forename: G J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Gamboa