#Mischocyttarus
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crawlieswithcri.bsky.social
The other males are lookin' for the ladies, this Mr. Western Paper Was (Mischocyttarus flavitarsis) is having a snooze at the old Juice Bar.

You do you!

#inverts #becurious
Macro photo of a male western paper wasp sleeping in the curve of a red plastic flower on a hummingbird feeder. he is situated vertically in profile with his right side showing.
October 30, 2025 at 4:35 PM
insectessociaux.bsky.social
At what point does a male social wasp leave his natal nest to reproduce? 🪹

In this blog, Daniela T. Garcia describes how the number of females in a colony of social wasps influences the departure of males for mating.

insectessociaux.com/2025/08/05/a...

#SocialInsects #Dispersal #Mischocyttarus
At what point does a male social wasp leave his natal nest to reproduce?
By Daniela Torres Garcia In this blog, Daniela Torres Garcia, from the University of São Paulo, describe how she discovered that the number of females in a Mischocyttarus cerberus wasp nest influen…
insectessociaux.com
August 4, 2025 at 4:45 PM
luxomancer.bsky.social
There are so many! I'm going to go with Wasps, and paper wasps in particular. There was a time when i did hate them, memories of child hood stings tainted my opinion of them, then i learned more about them, and got some Mischocyttarus mexicanus that are good neighbors 😁
A photo of a orangish red and yellow paper wasp from above. It's head is mostly orange red with some yellow stripes and large red eyes mottled with black. It's thorax is red with yellow borders and stripes. It's legs are mostly yellow, with the rear pair having some black bands. The wings are narrow and translucent orange. The wasp has a narrow yellow and orange "Waist" that widens into a red abdomen ringed with yellow.
July 26, 2025 at 4:21 AM
insectessociaux.bsky.social
New short communication! 📄

Garcia et al. showed that M. cerberus wasp males delay dispersal by 1 day in nests with more females, indicating social environment shapes male reproductive timing. ⏱
🔗 doi.org/10.1007/s000...

#SocialInsects #SocialWasps #Reproduction #Mischocyttarus #Dispersal #Vespidae
July 23, 2025 at 10:19 AM
baphijmm.bsky.social
Also re-arranged and filled in that rock “wall” in the back of the bench bump-out, so it looks better—and I *can* start bringing up the grade there, slightly bury those stones.

Some more pics from around. A paper wasp nest sleeping; the brown turkey fig producing; deer damage to crape myrtle.
A small paper wasp nest (Mischocyttarus flavitarsis) nestled in the crook between a wall and the fireplace exterior, against the soffit of the house at Canyoncide. These guys are really chill even during the day—I put one of those swag hooks like 18 inches from this nest, with a drill and everything—but here the nest is sleeping. This was last night. It’s really interesting, while they slept, occasionally they’d all kinda lift their wings, seemingly simultaneously; I assume it had to do with little breezes, but it made me wonder if hives dream. Two figs developing on the brown turkey fig tree. I hadn’t noticed these when I got the plant; nice little surprise. A potted Shadow Magic crape myrtle after being mowed down by deer. Not much remains. A Weigela can be seen in the background, similarly-shorn. A close-up on newly-developing leaves on the Shadow Magic crape myrtle. Deer completely stripped the thing, and it’s already working to fix that. Hopefully, the concentrated coyote piss I spread around yesterday—which *I* can smell, so I know they can—will deter further deer damage.
June 8, 2025 at 2:26 AM
luxomancer.bsky.social
Thanks. 🥰. I am not an expert and it is possible that you have them there. However the species map from Inaturalist shows a distribution along the South-central and mostly eastern side of Mexico and Central America up along the Gulf Coast, Florida, and the Carolina coasts...
A map of Central and North America showing Inaturalist.org contributed sightings of the Mexican Paper Wasp, Mischocyttarus mexicanus colored in red squares. This range starts in Guatemala and Belize and extends ino South-central Mexico, north along the Eastern side of Mexico up into Texas and mostly along the Gulf Coast, Florida, and the coastal areas of the Carolinas.
June 4, 2025 at 2:06 AM
luxomancer.bsky.social
Spicy Friend

Mexican Paper #Wasp, #Mischocyttarus mexicanus

#fujifilm X-S10, #Laowa 65mm #Macro

#MacroPhotography
#photography
#Invertebrates
#insects
#Hymenoptera
A macro photo of a dark orange and yellow wasp from above as it rests on light blue painted wood. The wasp's antennae are dark orange, it's head is dark orange with yellow stripes at the front, its eyes are dark orange with black mottling and its three ocelli (primitive eyes) Are in between the primary eyes in a triangular pattern. The thorax is dark orange with yellow bordering around the sides and two yellow stripes in the center. The 2 front pair of legs are mostly yellow with some black on the first segment while the back two legs are striped black and yellow. The wings are a brownish orange and are translucent. The abdomen has the typical "Wasp waist" and is dark orange alternating with yellow.
June 3, 2025 at 9:06 PM
luxomancer.bsky.social
Monday Mood.

Mexican Paper #Wasp, Mischocyttarus mexicanus.

Spring 2024

#Fujifilm X-S10, #Laowa 65mm #Macro

#MacroMonday
#insects
#Hymenoptera
#MondayMood
#Invertebrates
#MacroPhotography
#EastCoastKin
A photo of the front of an redand yellow paper wasp sitting on it's nest. The Paper wasp's powerful mandibles are yellow with darker edges, the eyes are dark rusty red with black mottling. Yellow markings surround the middle of the wasp's face and around the eyes, with red making up most of the back of the wasp's head. The Wasp's thorax which rises dome-like behind the head is mostly the rusty red with yellow lines around the sides and 2 yellow lines in the middle. The Wasp's wings, the leading edges of which are yellow with red veins rise V-like behind the wasp and are just out of focus. The wasp is resting on one circular chamber of it's nest which is a greenish gray, the rest of the nest is behind it just out of focus. This species of Paper Wasp is fairly docile and they kept a nest on our house for some years without causing any trouble. Sadly they were one of the many species of insects around our house that vanished after Hurricane Helene.
March 10, 2025 at 8:51 AM
cassandroid.substack.com
me: oh, never heard about the #wasp genus Mischocyttarus… I wonder if there's more than 2-3 species?

genus Mischocyttarus:
the roughly 250 described species of genus Mischocyttarus
January 28, 2025 at 11:55 PM
luxomancer.bsky.social
March also brought what is one of my top 10 #Macros of the year, this fantastic shot of a Mexican Paper Wasp, Mischocyttarus mexicanus, on it's nest.

#Fujifilm X-S10, #Laowa 65mm #macro

#BestOfLux2024
#Macrophotography
#Inverts
#Photography
A photo of a reddish orange and yellow wasp from the front. it's head is roundly triangular, with yellow antennae pointing towards the camera, the large oval eyes on the side of the head are red dappled with black, the powerful mandibles and center of the face are yellow. The thorax which rises behind the head is red with thin yellow stripes, from it rise the two wings which are viewed edge on, held at an acute angle. The wasp rests on one of the filled chambers of it's nest which is gray green
December 8, 2024 at 8:58 PM
macroarthropods.bsky.social
Mischocyttarus: largest genus of social wasps. New World species. Build single-comb nests. Exhibit flexible social structures. Found from southern US to South America. Important model for studying evolution of insect sociality. 🧪
December 8, 2024 at 11:47 AM
luxomancer.bsky.social
This is not to say January was completely lacking in Insect friends, this Mexican Paper #Wasp, (#Mischocyttarus mexicanus), posed for a nice portrait.

#Fujifilm X-S10, #Laowa 65mm #Macro

#Photography
#MacroPhotography
#BestOfLux2024
A macro photo of the face of a red and yellow paper wasp as it sits on its nest. The top of the wasp's head is red, with yellow in the middle, the oval shaped main eyes, on the sides of it's head are dark glossy red, with the antennae starting yellow, then fading to orangy red, then yellow at the tips. The nest that it is resting on is brown and flakey
December 3, 2024 at 9:10 PM
johncarlson.bsky.social
How interesting! In New Orleans we do not have Vespula, Dolichovespula, or Vespa, so these are my social wasps to watch. I did find some little Mischocyttarus paper wasps in my search for other social Hymenoptera but there aren’t many. Do you have other Vespidae where you are?
November 21, 2024 at 2:11 PM
luxomancer.bsky.social
This is today's energy, it may be my energy from this time forward .

the Mexican Paper Wasp, Mischocyttarus mexicanus

#Macrophotography
#NoNotObeyInAdvance
A dark red and yellow wasp looking at the camera as it is perched on it's grayish green nest.
November 7, 2024 at 10:32 PM
humanbyweight.bsky.social
I give a different answer every time someone asks! Currently, I think (1) Guyalna glauca, (2) Mischocyttarus flavitarsis (specifically the reddish form restricted to the Colorado Plateau), and (3) Trissolcus japonicus.
October 3, 2024 at 3:56 AM
alexwild.bsky.social
A narrow-waisted Mischocyttarus paper wasp nest, showing the foundress female and brood of different stages. I’ve never had any trouble approaching small wasp nests like this, they’re quite timid. Colombia.
Photograph of a slender, yellow and brown-striped wasp standing alert on the side of a small paper nest with 20 hexagonal cells. The background is an evenly green banana leaf.
August 8, 2024 at 1:43 PM
luxomancer.bsky.social
One of my favorite #Macros of the year so far, the Mexican Paper #Wasp, #Mischocyttarus mexicanus cubicola, a rather chill species that lives on my front porch.

#Invertefest
#Invert(s
#insect(S
#hymenoptera
A yellow and orange wasp looks at the camera as it perches on it's nest.
April 24, 2024 at 9:49 PM
luxomancer.bsky.social
Photo A Day, March 24th.

Mexican Paper #Wasp, Mischocyttarus mexicanus

Plans to go out hunting cool bugs/plants/mushrooms today were thwarted by the pollenocalypse, but my resident Porch Wasps offered to pose nicely.

#Fujifilm X-S10, #Laowa 65mm #Macro

#Hymenoptera
#Insects
#Macrophotography
A close up photo of a paper wasp sitting on its nest. The sharp serrated mandibles are yellow, the oval eyes are dark rusty red with dark spots, the center of the head is also a rusty red color with yellow likes along the side. The thorax is bordered with yellow with red in the middle and on the sides with 2 yellow lines next to the center of the thorax. The leading edge of the wings which are held at an angle are yellow.
March 24, 2024 at 11:11 PM
luxomancer.bsky.social
#monday mood.

Possibly the Mexican Paper #Wasp, #Mischocyttarus mexicanus.

#fujifilm X-S10, #Laowa 65mm #Macro.

#Macrophotography
#Hymenoptera
#NaturePhotography
#invert(s)
#Insect(s)
A macro photo of the face of a paper wasp which is resting on it's nest. Long orange antennae flank the roundly triangular head which is marked with dark orange and bright yellow. The large oval eyes are orange mottled with dark markings and it's mandibles are strongly serrated and yellow
January 30, 2024 at 1:46 AM
andybugguy.bsky.social
Mischocyttarus mexicanus is the ultimate gateway wasp! You can get right up in their faces and they always keep their cool... ;)
#UFBugs
November 23, 2024 at 2:01 AM