Nest Architecture of the Australian Paper Wasp Ropalidia Romandi Cabeti , With a Note on its Developmental Process (Hymenoptera:Vespidae)

Nest architecture of Ropalidia romandi cabeti was described,based on 2 incipient (an active and an abandoned) nests and 3developed ones. Developed nests were spherical, or hemisphericalwhen built under flat surfaces, consisted of several to more than 10horizontal combs with oval or irregular shapes. Each comb wassuspended by many pedicels from the upper one. Since severalcombs were simultaneously constructed at the same story, theyoften produced irregular interconnections that caused complexstair-like, or “semispiral” structures. Combs were entirely surroundedby an outer envelope with a small entrance hole at thelower tip. The envelope was probably constructed after the firstgroup of combs had been completed. Materials for both cells andenvelope were plant fibers glued together with salivary secretion.The surface of envelope was more thickly coated with the secretionthan cell walls. The largest nest had about 30,000 cells in morethan l0 stories of combs that had a surface area of 1,933 cm2. Itsdimensions were 21.5 cm in longer diameter and 17.5 cm in height