Pollen Wasps and Flowers in Southern Africa

About this book

Pollen wasps are different to other wasps as, like bees, they provision their nests with pollen and nectar, rather than with hunted insects and spiders, as other wasps do. Western southern Africa is particularly rich in pollen wasps where they are important as flower pollinators, and they have interesting and close associations with the plants visited. Pollen Wasps and Flowers in Southern Africa covers world distribution, southern African distribution, morphology, taxonomy, life history (including behaviour), as well as associated organisms of these wasps and presently recognised species. The sections on behaviour include: flower visiting, water visiting, nesting, nest provisioning, sleeping and sheltering, and male behaviour. Details of the various 21 plant families visited are given, and there is a section on the impact of land use practices on pollen wasps. Colour photographs of the genera, flowers and vegetation types are provided, and line drawings depict the various nest types and distribution maps. Pollen Wasps and Flowers in Southern Africa will interest entomologists, conservationists, ecologists, botanists, as well as amateurs wanting to know more about these insects.

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