On Wed, 28 Jun 1995, Adam Finkelstein wrote:
 
> From: [log in to unmask] (Bernd)
> Newsgroups: sci.bio.entomology.misc
> Subject: Wasp vivisecting Bee
> Date: 25 Jun 1995 00:53:15 GMT
> Organization: Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile
>
>
> Yesterday morning I made the following observation:
>
> A wasp was "fighting" (I'm not sure if the wasp did actually hunt
> the bee, but it looked like the bee was still alive during the
> process I describe next) with a bee and after that did the following:
>
> I was able to hear certain "clicks" and later realized what the
> wasp had done: In addition to cutting off the legs of the insect,
> it cleanly separated the torax from the abdomen and then the head of
> the bee. Then the wasp took the torax and flew away with it.
>
> I still have the rests of the bee. What I would like to know is:
>
> What is so interesting about the torax of an insect? (I have been
> lucky a long time ago, and observed a wasp hunting a much heavier
> spider in an avocado tree. They fell together to earth, and after
> a short fight, the wasp pulled the motionless body of the spider
> to a prefabricated hole on the floor. I know that story: the wasp
> lays its eggs into the fresh and still alive victim, which is then
> the aliment for the growing larvae). But the torax itself is dead,
> or all its cells will soon die, and: why not the abdomen, why did
> the wasp so selectively cut out the torax??
>
> A prof here told me (after my description of the wasp), that it may
> be a yellow jacket, which is not a chilean species, but was introduced
> by accident and is now very common from north to south (emmm... there
> is not much "west to east" in chile :):)
>
> Is this a typical behaviour for yellow jackets?
>
> I'm curious to know the answer. Thanks in advance,
>                                                    bernd rohwedder
 
Wasps are after protein.  The thorax is full of flight muscles.  This
protein is used to feed the wasp larvae.
 
David De Jong>