Chalybion californicum
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Sphecidae
Genus: Chalybion
Species:
C. californicum
Binomial name
Chalybion californicum
(Saussure, 1867) [1]
Synonyms [1]

Chalybion californicum, the common blue mud dauber of North America, is a metallic blue species of mud dauber wasp first described by Henri Louis Frédéric de Saussure in 1867. It is not normally aggressive towards humans.[2] It is similar in shape and colour to the steel-blue cricket hunter (Chlorion aerarium). Like other types of wasps, males do not have an ovipositor, and therefore cannot sting. It is ranged from northern Mexico to southern Canada, including most of the United States.[3] It has also been introduced to regions including Hawaii, Bermuda, Croatia and other European countries.[4]

Behavior

Females can build their own nests, but often refurbish nests abandoned by other wasps and bees,[4] particularly those of Sceliphron caementarium,[5] removing any spiders captured by S. caementarium and the larva, replacing it with an egg of its own and freshly caught spiders.[3] They go through multiple generations in a year.[2]

Interaction with other species

This species is most famous for its predation of black widow spiders.[2] Adults feed on the nectar of flowers, which powers their flight. They pollinate some common wildflowers, including Berberis vulgaris, Daucus carota, and Zizia aurea. Larvae are fed spiders, often Latrodectus mactans. They prefer to hunt prey on the ground or under rocks.[4]

References

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  1. 1 2 Day, M. C. (1979). "The species of Hymenoptera described by Linnaeus in the genera Sphex, Chrysis, Vespa, Apis and Mutilla". Biological Journal of the Linnean Society. 12 (1): 45–84. doi:10.1111/j.1095-8312.1979.tb00049.x.
  2. 1 2 3 Drees, Bastiaan M. & Jackman, John A. (1999). "Mud Daubers". Field Guide to Texas Insects. Gulf Publishing Company. ISBN 978-0-87719-263-3. Archived from the original on 12 July 2007. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  3. 1 2 Statman-Weil, Zoe; Wojcik, Vicki. "The Blue Mud Wasp (Chalybion californium)". U.S. Forest Service. United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 Mei1, Maurizio; Boščík, Ivo (2016). "Evidence of the introduction into Europe of the Nearctic mud-dauber wasp Chalybion californicum (de Saussure) (Hymenoptera, Sphecidae)" (PDF). Boletín de la Sociedad Entomológica Aragonesa (58): 239–240. Retrieved 20 August 2020.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  5. ↑ "Species Chalybion californicum – Blue Mud Wasp". BugGuide. Department of Entomology, Iowa State University. 10 June 2017. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
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