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Individual specialization in the hunting wasp Trypoxylon (Trypargilum) albonigrum (Hymenoptera, Crabronidae)

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Abstract

Individual-level variation in resource use occurs in a broad array of vertebrate and invertebrate taxa and may have important ecological and evolutionary implications. In this study, we measured the degree of individual-level variation in prey preference of the hunting wasp Trypoxylon albonigrum, which inhabits the Atlantic Forest in southeastern Brazil. This wasp captures several orb-weaving spider genera to provision nests. Individuals consistently specialized on a narrow subset of the prey taxa consumed by the population, indicating the existence of significant individual-level variation in prey preferences. The population niche was broader in the wet season in terms of both prey size and taxa. In the case of prey size, the population niche expansion was achieved via increased individual niche breadths, whereas in the case of prey taxa, individual niches remained relatively constrained, and the population niche expanded via increased interindividual variation. The observed pattern suggests the possibility of functional trade-offs associated with the taxon of the consumed prey. The nature of the trade-offs remains unknown, but they are likely related to learning in searching and/or handling prey. We hypothesize that by specializing on specific prey taxa, individuals increase foraging efficiency, reducing foraging time and ultimately increasing reproductive success.

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Acknowledgments

M.S. Araújo thanks the CAPES foundation, and M.O. Gonzaga thanks the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (proc. 99/06089-4 and 04/06072-4) for financial support. Additional financial support was provided by Idea Wild. We would like to thank A.J. Santos for his assistance during the identification of the spiders and S.T.P. Amarante for identifying the wasp species. D.I. Bolnick and two anonymous reviewers made useful comments on the manuscript. This study complies with the current laws of Brazil.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Caixa Postal 6109, 13083-970, Campinas, SP, Brazil

    Márcio S. Araújo

  2. Depto. de Zoologia, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Caixa Postal 6109, 13083-970, Campinas, SP, Brazil

    Marcelo O. Gonzaga

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  1. Márcio S. Araújo
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  2. Marcelo O. Gonzaga
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Correspondence to Márcio S. Araújo.

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Communicated by M. Giurfa

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Araújo, M.S., Gonzaga, M.O. Individual specialization in the hunting wasp Trypoxylon (Trypargilum) albonigrum (Hymenoptera, Crabronidae). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 61, 1855–1863 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-007-0425-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-007-0425-z

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