Open access journal: http://periodicos.uefs.br/index.php/sociobiology
ISSN: 0361-6525

DOI: 10.13102/sociobiology.v69i2.7883Sociobiology 69(2): e7883 (June, 2022)

Ants prey on social wasps (Maciel et al., 2016) 
affecting the evolution of nest architecture (Andena et al., 
2009), defense behaviors (Milani et al., 2021), and selection 
of nesting sites of these insects (Corbara et al., 2009). In 
addition, they attack and loot larvae and pupae in wasp 
colonies (O’Donnell & Jeanne, 1990; Bouwma et al., 2007), as 
reported for Eciton burchelli (Westwood, 1842) (Hymenoptera: 
Formicidae) preying on larvae and pupae of Agelaia yepocapa 
(Richards, 1978) (Hymenoptera: Vespidae), even in colonies 
with thousands of individuals of this wasp (Hunt et al., 2001).

The importance of social wasps in natural and agricultural 
ecosystems (Souza & Zanuncio, 2012), especially in the 
biological control (Prezoto et al., 2019), justifies studies 
on predation of these insects by ants. The objective of this 

Abstract  
Ants prey on social wasps affecting the evolution of nest architecture, defense 
behaviors, and selection of nesting sites of these insects. The importance of 
social wasps in natural and agricultural ecosystems, especially in biological 
control, justifies studies on predation of these insects by ants. The objective 
of this work is to report the colony predation of the social wasp Agelaia vicina 
(de Saussure, 1854) and the nest occupation of Parachartergus pseudapicalis 
Willinck, 1959 (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) by the ant Camponotus renggeri 
Emery, 1894 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in the Atlantic Forest biome. The 
records occurred in 2015 and 2018 in southern Minas Gerais state, Brazil. This 
is the first record of C. renggeri preying on and occupying social wasp nests. 
This relationship between social wasps and ants constitutes an adaptation for 
the survival of these latter insects, and the limited number of records increases 
the need for research on the relevance of this phenomenon to the ecology of 
Atlantic Forest Hymenoptera.

Sociobiology
An international journal on social insects

Marcos M. de Souza1, Lidiane A. Junqueira1, Gabriel C. Jacques2, Gabriel S. Teófilo-Guedes3, José C. Zanuncio4

Article History

Edited by
Evandro Nascimento Silva, UEFS, Brazil
Received                          15 March 2022
Initial acceptance           24 April 2022
Final acceptance            13 June 2022
Publication date             30 June 2022

Keywords 
Ant; Polistinae; Social wasp, predation.

Corresponding author 
Gabriel de Castro Jacques
Instituto de Educação, Ciência e 
Tecnologia de Minas Gerais
Campus Bambuí, Varginha Farm 
Bambuí-Medeiros roadway
Km 05 - Minas Gerais, Brasil. 
E-Mail: gabriel.jacques@ifmg.edu.br

work is to report the colony predation of the social wasp 
Agelaia vicina (de Saussure, 1854) and the nest occupation of 
Parachartergus pseudapicalis Willinck, 1959 (Hymenoptera: 
Vespidae) by the ant Camponotus renggeri Emery, 1894 
(Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in the Atlantic Forest biome.

Camponotus renggeri preyed on an A. vicina nest 
and occupied a P. pseudapicalis nest in 2015 and 2018, 
respectively, in the Atlantic Forest in the municipality of 
Inconfidentes (22.3174° S, 46.3255° W), Minas Gerais state, 
Brazil. Information about the environment, year season, the 
substrate used for nesting, and height of the social wasps’ 
nests from the ground were recorded. Specimens of social 
wasps and ants were collected and identified by dichotomous 
keys (Richards, 1978; Carpenter & Marques, 2001) or by 

1 - Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Sul de Minas, Inconfidentes, Minas Gerais, Brazil
2 - Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia de Minas Gerais, Campus Bambuí, Bambuí, Minas Gerais, Brazil
3 - Universidade de Campinas, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
4 - Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil

Camponotus renggeri (Formicidae) predated Agelaia vicina (Vespidae) nest and occupied 
Parachartergus pseudapicalis (Vespidae) nest

ID

SHoRT NoTE

mailto:gabriel.jacques@ifmg.edu.br
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9619-6065


Marcos M. de Souza et al. – Camponotus renggeri predated and occupied social wasps’ nests2

the taxonomists Dr. Orlando Tobias da Silveira (Emílio 
Goeldi Museum, Belém, Pará) and Dr. Rodrigo M. Feitosa 
(Laboratory of Systematics and Biology of Ants, Federal 
University of Paraná). The collected material was deposited 
in the biological collection of IFSULDEMINAS, Campus 
Inconfidentes, tumble number 04798-2018, 04786-2018, 06531- 
2018 and 06532-2018. The plants used by wasps for nesting 
were identified in the field or based on photographs by 
Professor Laércio Loures from IFSULDEMINAS - Campus 
Inconfidentes.

Camponotus renggeri preyed on individuals of A. 
vicina in a nest built in the tree species Erythrina falcata 
(Fabaceae) at about 1.5 m above the ground in late autumn, 

the dry season in the research region. Individuals of this ant 
tried to enter through the hollow of the tree, accessing the 
combs fixed inside the trunk in the colony of A. vicina, and 
the wasps, agitated, tried to defend the colony, apparently by 
biting the ants, as reported with Polybia occidentalis Olivier, 
1791 on Camponotus atriceps Smith, 1858 (Bowman et al., 
2007) and A. yepocapa on E. burchelli (O’Donnell & Jeanne, 
1990). In addition to this defensive behavior, wasps can also 
detect and eliminate pheromone foci left by ants, reducing 
access signaling to their colonies (Bouwma et al., 2007). On 
the other hand, wasps can prey on ants, as demonstrated by 
the analysis of food stored in colonies of P. occidentalis and 
Polybia paulista Ihering 1896 (Michelutti et al., 2014).

Fig 1. Camponotus renggeri (Formicidae) (A, B and C) occupied a nest Parachartergus pseudapicalis (Vespidae) (D and E).



Sociobiology 69(2): e7883 (June, 2022) 3

Camponotus renggeri (Figure 1A, 1B and 1C) occupied 
a nest of P. pseudapicalis (Figure 1D) nesting in Tibouchina 
granulosa (Desr.) Cogn. (Melastomataceae), 1.9 m above 
ground in late spring, rainy season, apparently abandoned by 
this wasp. This occurred one week after the registration of the 
social wasp colony. No information on whether the ants looted 
and preyed on the wasps or simply occupied the abandoned 
nest (Figure 1E) and the lack of wasps prevented the 
ethological record between C. renggeri and P. pseudapicalis. 
These records are important, as ants can be opportunistic, 
preying on offspring without necessarily confronting adult 
wasps (Lacey, 1979).

The importance of nest height for social wasps is 
poorly studied (de Souza et al., 2012; Almeida et al., 2014), 
but the proportion between nest height and aggressiveness 
as defense strategies of these insects seems to be inversely 
correlated (Jeanne, 1975). The height of Agelaia spp. nests 
varies because these wasps use natural and artificial cavities, 
such as tree hollows to nest, commonly without a protective 
envelope (Zucchi et al., 1995).

The seasonality of occurrences and the opportunistic 
nesting and foraging behavior (Silvestre et al., 2003; Yamamoto 
& Del-Claro, 2008; Lange et al., 2019) of ants of the genus 
Camponotus suggests that the attack in late autumn on the 
A. vicina nest is associated to the reduction of resources in 
the environment due to drought. On the other hand, the 
occupation of the P. pseudapicalis nest at the beginning of the 
rainy season may be associated with the search for refuge and, 
eventually, for resources.

Camponotus renggeri, widely distributed in South 
America, feeds mainly on liquid resources of extrafloral 
nectaries and trophobionts and builds its nests underground 
and on dead branches and trunks or plant roots (Ronque et 
al., 2018). Camponotus atriceps Smith, 1858, Camponotus 
rectangularis Emery, 1890, and other species of this genus 
preyed on and occupied nests of the social wasp Polybia 
occidentalis (Bouwma et al., 2007).

This is the first record of C. renggeri preying on and 
occupying social wasp nests. This relationship between social 
wasps and ants constitutes an adaptation for the survival of 
these latter insects, and the limited number of records increases 
the need for research on the relevance of this phenomenon to 
the ecology of Atlantic Forest Hymenoptera.

Author’s Contribution

LAJ: Investigation; Writing-Original Draft
MMS: Conceptualization; Project administration; Resources
GCJ: Resources; Writing-Review & Editing; Visualization
GSTG: Investigation; Writing-Original Draft
JCZ: Supervision; Writing-Review & Editing

Acknowledgments

To taxonomists Dr. Orlando Tobias da Silveira (Emílio 
Goeldi Museum), Dr. Rodrigo M. Feitosa (Federal University 

of Paraná) and Professor Laércio Loures (IFSULDEMINAS), 
for the insects and plants identification. To the Brazilian 
institutions “Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento 
Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)”, “Coordenação de 
Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES- 
Finance Code 001), “Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa 
do Estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG)” and “Programa 
Cooperativo sobre Proteção Florestal (PROTEF) do Instituto 
de Pesquisas e Estudos Florestais (IPEF)” for financial support.

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