Nest-building

Guides

• Gryllacrididae

  raspy crickets, leaf-rolling crickets

  Gryllacrididae is a family of non-jumping orthopterans in the suborder Ensifera, commonly known as raspy crickets or leaf-rolling crickets. The family occurs worldwide and contains over 600 species across more than 90 genera, organized into two subfamilies: Gryllacridinae and Hyperbaeninae. Members are distinguished by their unique ability to produce silk independently from other insects, which they use to construct shelters from folded leaves or to seal burrows in soil, sand, or wood. Historically, the family was broadly defined to include Stenopelmatidae and Rhaphidophoridae, which are now recognized as separate families.

  OrthopteraEnsiferasilk-productionnest-buildingnocturnalwinglessgranivorypredationinvasive-speciesconvergent-evolution

• Polistes major major

  horse's wasp

  Polistes major major is a neotropical eusocial paper wasp subspecies most commonly found on Hispaniola Island and within Central America. It is known locally as "avispa de caballo" (horse's wasp) in the Dominican Republic. As a member of the genus Polistes, it is a social wasp that constructs exposed paper nests and lives in colonies with a reproductive hierarchy.

  eusocialpaper-waspneotropicalHispaniolaCentral-AmericaDominican-Republicavispa-de-caballohorse's-waspPolistesVespidaeHymenopterainsectwaspsocial-insectcolonialnest-building