title: A unique nest-protection strategy in a new species of spider wasp.
abstract: Hymenoptera show a great variation in reproductive potential and nesting behavior, from thousands of eggs in sawflies to just a dozen in nest-provisioning wasps. Reduction in reproductive potential in evolutionary derived Hymenoptera is often facilitated by advanced behavioral mechanisms and nesting strategies. Here we describe a surprising nesting behavior that was previously unknown in the entire animal kingdom: the use of a vestibular cell filled with dead ants in a new spider wasp (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae) species collected with trap nests in South-East China. We scientifically describe the 'Bone-house Wasp' as Deuteragenia ossarium sp. nov., named after graveyard bone-houses or ossuaries. We show that D. ossarium nests are less vulnerable to natural enemies than nests of other sympatric trap-nesting wasps, suggesting an effective nest protection strategy, most likely by utilizing chemical cues emanating from the dead ants.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nature Conservation and Landscape Ecology, Institute of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany; Ecosystem Function Group, Institute of Ecology, University of Lüneburg, Lüneburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Staab
authors.affiliation: Museum für Naturkunde, Leibniz Institute for Research on Evolution and Biodiversity, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ohl
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Chao-Dong
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.affiliation: Department of Nature Conservation and Landscape Ecology, Institute of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany; Ecosystem Function Group, Institute of Ecology, University of Lüneburg, Lüneburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Alexandra-Maria
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Klein
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001000:Ants / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006927:Hymenoptera / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D009425:Nesting Behavior; D012098:Reproduction