Comparative Development of Queen Nests of Four Species of Yellowjackets (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) Reared under Identical Conditions

Queen nest growth rates and immature stage durations were compared for nests initiated in a controlled environment chamber by four yellowjacket species: Vespula maculifrons (Buysson), V. germanica (F.), V. vulgaris (L.), and V. vidua (Saussure). Nests of the first two species averaged a daily increase of 1.90 and 2.76 cells, respectively. The single nests of V. vulgaris and V. vidua grew more slowly. Average size of the queen nest at first worker emergence was 62.2 cells for V. maculifrons and 71.3 cells for V. germanica. Immatures of V. germanica averaged the fastest total development (27.4 days), but all four species showed considerable variation in duration of all life stages. Percentages of brood composition at the time of first worker emergence were in reasonably close agreement with percentages estimated by M. E. Archer for nests of V. vulgaris at the same stage. However, relative percentages of brood composition in queen nests changed over time. Ways are discussed in which the data from this study can be applied to models simulating colony population growth. Possible reasons for the apparent larger size of laboratory-grown queen nests in comparison with field-collected nests, and for the lack of extensive envelope construction by V. maculifrons queens, are also considered.