Natural History and Evolution of Paper-Wasps

The diversity of social behaviour among birds and primates is surpassed only by members of the Hymenopteran insects (bees, andts, and wasps). The paper-wasps are a large and varied group, and have been studied extensively by a wide range of biologists interested in the evolution of sociality. This book comprises an in-depth survey of most major areas of research on the paper-wasps - from syntheses of taxonomy and phylogeny, natural history (nesting behaviour, social organization, orientation, and natural enemies) to topics of general theoretical interest such as the evolution of cooperation, social parasitism, kin recognition, and the division of labour.