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Inventive nesting behaviour in the keyhole wasp Pachodynerus nasidens Latreille (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in Australia, and the risk to aviation safety

The keyhole wasp (Pachodynerus nasidens Latreille 1812), a mud-nesting wasp native to South and Central America and the Caribbean, is a relatively recent (2010) arrival in Australia. In its native range it is known to use man-made cavities to construct nests. A series of serious safety incidents Bri...

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Autores principales: House, Alan P. N., Ring, Jackson G., Shaw, Phillip P.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Public Library of Science 2020
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7703898/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33253188
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0242063
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author House, Alan P. N.
Ring, Jackson G.
Shaw, Phillip P.
author_facet House, Alan P. N.
Ring, Jackson G.
Shaw, Phillip P.
author_sort House, Alan P. N.
collection PubMed
description The keyhole wasp (Pachodynerus nasidens Latreille 1812), a mud-nesting wasp native to South and Central America and the Caribbean, is a relatively recent (2010) arrival in Australia. In its native range it is known to use man-made cavities to construct nests. A series of serious safety incidents Brisbane Airport related to the obstruction of vital airspeed measuring pitot probes on aircraft possibly caused by mud-nesting wasps, prompted an assessment of risk. An experiment was designed to determine the species responsible, the types of aircraft most affected, the seasonal pattern of potential risk and the spatial distribution of risk on the airport. A series of replica pitot probes were constructed using 3D-printing technology, representing aircraft with high numbers of movements (landings and take-offs), and mounted at four locations at the airport. Probes were monitored for 39 months. Probes blocked by mud nesting wasps were retrieved and incubated in mesh bags. Emerging wasps were identified to species. Results show that all nests in probes were made by P. nasidens, and peak nesting occurs in the summer months. Nesting success (as proportion of nests with live adult emergents) was optimal between 24 and 31°C and that probes with apertures of more than 3 mm diameter are preferred. Not all areas on the airport are affected equally, with the majority of nests constructed in one area. The proportion of grassed areas within 1000 m of probes was a significant predictor of nesting, and probe volume may determine the sex of emerging wasps.
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spelling pubmed-77038982020-12-03 Inventive nesting behaviour in the keyhole wasp Pachodynerus nasidens Latreille (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in Australia, and the risk to aviation safety House, Alan P. N. Ring, Jackson G. Shaw, Phillip P. PLoS One Research Article The keyhole wasp (Pachodynerus nasidens Latreille 1812), a mud-nesting wasp native to South and Central America and the Caribbean, is a relatively recent (2010) arrival in Australia. In its native range it is known to use man-made cavities to construct nests. A series of serious safety incidents Brisbane Airport related to the obstruction of vital airspeed measuring pitot probes on aircraft possibly caused by mud-nesting wasps, prompted an assessment of risk. An experiment was designed to determine the species responsible, the types of aircraft most affected, the seasonal pattern of potential risk and the spatial distribution of risk on the airport. A series of replica pitot probes were constructed using 3D-printing technology, representing aircraft with high numbers of movements (landings and take-offs), and mounted at four locations at the airport. Probes were monitored for 39 months. Probes blocked by mud nesting wasps were retrieved and incubated in mesh bags. Emerging wasps were identified to species. Results show that all nests in probes were made by P. nasidens, and peak nesting occurs in the summer months. Nesting success (as proportion of nests with live adult emergents) was optimal between 24 and 31°C and that probes with apertures of more than 3 mm diameter are preferred. Not all areas on the airport are affected equally, with the majority of nests constructed in one area. The proportion of grassed areas within 1000 m of probes was a significant predictor of nesting, and probe volume may determine the sex of emerging wasps. Public Library of Science 2020-11-30 /pmc/articles/PMC7703898/ /pubmed/33253188 http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0242063 Text en © 2020 House et al http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
spellingShingle Research Article
House, Alan P. N.
Ring, Jackson G.
Shaw, Phillip P.
Inventive nesting behaviour in the keyhole wasp Pachodynerus nasidens Latreille (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in Australia, and the risk to aviation safety
title Inventive nesting behaviour in the keyhole wasp Pachodynerus nasidens Latreille (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in Australia, and the risk to aviation safety
title_full Inventive nesting behaviour in the keyhole wasp Pachodynerus nasidens Latreille (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in Australia, and the risk to aviation safety
title_fullStr Inventive nesting behaviour in the keyhole wasp Pachodynerus nasidens Latreille (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in Australia, and the risk to aviation safety
title_full_unstemmed Inventive nesting behaviour in the keyhole wasp Pachodynerus nasidens Latreille (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in Australia, and the risk to aviation safety
title_short Inventive nesting behaviour in the keyhole wasp Pachodynerus nasidens Latreille (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in Australia, and the risk to aviation safety
title_sort inventive nesting behaviour in the keyhole wasp pachodynerus nasidens latreille (hymenoptera: vespidae) in australia, and the risk to aviation safety
topic Research Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7703898/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33253188
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0242063
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