Prey-of-mason-wasps
Guides
Epipaschia
Epipaschia is a genus of snout moths in the family Pyralidae, subfamily Epipaschiinae. The genus was established by James Brackenridge Clemens in 1860. It contains at least three described species: Epipaschia mesoleucalis, Epipaschia ochrotalis, and the type species Epipaschia superatalis. The caterpillars of Epipaschia superatalis, known as the Dimorphic Macalla Moth, serve as prey for the mason wasp Monobia quadridens.
Platynota calidana
Platynota calidana is a small tortricid moth with a wingspan of approximately 15 mm. The species is known from limited geographic records in Cuba and Florida, USA. As a member of the leafroller moth genus Platynota, its larvae likely feed on plant foliage, though specific host associations remain undocumented.
Psilocorsis cirrhoptera
Psilocorsis cirrhoptera is a small moth in the family Depressariidae, described by Ronald W. Hodges in 1961. It is known from Arizona, North America, where adults have been recorded in July. The species is one of several Psilocorsis moths whose leaf-tying caterpillars are hunted by mason wasps as prey. The wingspan is approximately 19 mm.
Sciota rubrisparsella
Sciota rubrisparsella is a species of snout moth in the family Pyralidae, subfamily Phycitinae. The genus Sciota includes several leafroller moths whose larvae feed on various hardwood trees. This species is known to be preyed upon by the mason wasp Monobia quadridens, which hunts its caterpillars as food for its own larvae.
Sciota uvinella
sweetgum leafroller moth
Sciota uvinella is a small snout moth in the family Pyralidae, commonly known as the sweetgum leafroller moth. The species was described by Ragonot in 1887 and occurs in eastern North America. Its common name derives from the larval habit of rolling or folding leaves of its host plant, sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua). The species is notable as a primary prey item for the four-toothed mason wasp, Monobia quadridens, which paralyzes the caterpillars to provision its nest cells.