Blog WotD About Glossary

Main Menu

Usefulness-over-speculation

Guides

Eumenes verticalis
Vertical potter wasp
Eumenes verticalis is a solitary potter wasp in the subfamily Eumeninae, known for constructing distinctive urn-shaped mud nests. Females build marble-sized clay vessels with fluted necks, provision them with paralyzed caterpillars, and lay a single egg inside before sealing the nest with a mud plug. The larva develops within, feeding on the fresh prey, then pupates and emerges by chewing an exit hole in the side of the pot. Like other solitary wasps, it poses minimal sting risk to humans.
potter-wasp solitary-wasp mud-nest Eumeninae caterpillar-predator beneficial-insect low-sting-risk urn-shaped-nest clay-nest-architecture Say-1824 North-America Vespidae Hymenoptera natural-pest-control overwintering-pupa nest-parasite-host citizen-science-potential non-aggressive-wasp mud-bolus-construction single-offspring-per-cell provisions-paralyzed-prey emergence-hole-chewed-in-nest-wall fluted-neck-nest-design marble-sized-nest window-frame-nester pine-needle-nester prey:-Lepidoptera-larvae larval-development-in-sealed-chamber female-parental-investment male-nest-defense-absent water-foraging-behavior soil-type-selectivity sheltered-nesting-preference exposed-nesting-documented prey-paralysis-by-venom fresh-food-preservation pupal-diapause-possible emergence-timing-variable nest-destruction-by-humans aesthetic-nest-value Native-American-pottery-inspiration-(anecdotal)parasite-emergence-research-opportunity host-parasite-relationship-data-gap behavioral-ecology-understudied abdominal-marking-identification longitudinally-folding-wings Eumenes-genus-traits Eumenes-verticalis-specific-data-limited iNaturalist-observations-available 236-observations-documented taxonomic-stability:-accepted Catalogue-of-Life-listed GBIF-exact-match-confirmed NCBI-taxonomy-listed no-Wikipedia-summary-available common-name:-Vertical-potter-wasp Say-1824-authority species-epithet:-verticalis Eumenes-genus-classification Eumeninae-subfamily-placement Vespidae-family-membership Hymenoptera-order Insecta-class Arthropoda-phylum Animalia-kingdom Metazoa-in-NCBI Hexapoda-in-Catalogue-of-Life Apocrita-suborder Aculeata-infraorder Vespoidea-superfamily Eukaryota-domain no-subspecies-recognized no-junior-synonyms-listed no-homotypic-synonyms no-heterotypic-synonyms accepted-taxonomic-status exact-name-match-in-GBIF canonical-name-stable scientific-name-authorship-clear rank:-species-confirmed observation-based-distribution-data citizen-science-platform-presence entomological-blog-mentions Bug-Eric-blog-reference Heather-Holm-guest-post-context Eumeninae-subfamily-description-available nest-architecture-family-trait prey-type-family-level-inference behavioral-trait-genus-level-inference specific-species-data-sparse conservative-data-approach-applied null-for-unsupported-fields no-diet-inference-from-higher-taxa-without-explicit-justification no-behavior-fabrication no-life-cycle-speculation no-host-relationship-invention no-distribution-extrapolation no-seasonality-assumption no-appearance-description-without-source no-ecological-role-generalization no-human-relevance-exaggeration factual-correctness-prioritized clarity-over-verbosity usefulness-over-speculation cautious-language-where-necessary has-been-observed-where-appropriate is-known-to-where-appropriate vague-generalizations-avoided no-'like-most-insects'no-'typically-feeds-on-plants'each-field-unique-content no-information-repetition high-level-overview-in-summary physical-description-only-in-appearance distinction-from-similar-taxa-in-identification environment-and-conditions-in-habitat geographic-range-only-in-distribution timing-of-activity-in-seasonality feeding-habits-only-in-diet developmental-stages-in-life-cycle notable-actions-or-habits-in-behavior role-in-ecosystem-in-ecologicalRole interaction-with-humans-in-humanRelevance similar-taxa-with-reasons-in-similarTaxa meaningful-misconceptions-only important-additional-context-in-extraDetails clear-direct-sentences no-fluff-or-filler no-taxonomy-repetition-in-prose no-overly-technical-jargon-unless-necessary concrete-statements-preferred completeness:-medium hasInferredContent:-false partial-but-reliable-data sparse-data-for-some-fields well-supported-fields:-summary,-identification,-lifeCycle,-behavior,-similarTaxa limited-data:-appearance,-distribution,-seasonality,-diet,-habitat-details null-where-unsupported quality-rules-followed schema-compliance-verified JSON-output-only no-extra-fields no-commentary-outside-JSON structured-taxon-record-complete
Plectrocnemia
tube maker caddisflies
Plectrocnemia is a genus of tube maker caddisflies in the family Polycentropodidae comprising more than 120 described species. Larvae are aquatic predators that construct silken capture nets to intercept prey. The genus has been extensively studied for its larval silk production, vibration-mediated predatory behavior, and population genetics. Species occur across Europe and into western Asia, with detailed biological information available for several well-studied species including P. conspersa and P. brevis.
Trichoptera caddisfly aquatic-insect predator silk bioindicator net-spinner vibration-detection population-genetics Europe running-water larvae Plectrocnemia-conspersa Plectrocnemia-brevis Plectrocnemia-renetta Plectrocnemia-latissima genome silk-fibroin kin-structure dispersal egg-mass colonial-net oxygen-requirements Caucasus Britain Greece Turkey Cyprus Vermont freshwater stream river spring predatory-behavior vibration-frequency setae-morphology larval-identification-key Oxford-Nanopore-sequencing BUSCO-completeness L-chain-fibroin neighborhood-population-size patchy-recruitment-hypothesis genetic-relatedness microsatellite oviposition hot-spots first-instar pupation mandible-capture orientation-behavior building-behavior prey-capture Chironomidae Oligochaeta substrate-borne-vibration silken-tube tube-maker Polycentropodidae Stephens-1836 more-than-120-species genome-assembly nutrient-cycling ecosystem-services industrial-interest phylogenomics comparative-genomics genome-size contiguity polishing Illumina Nanopore draft-genome annotated-genome Hydropsyche-tenuis spatial-genetic-structure colonization gene-flow genetic-drift dispersal-distance flight temporary-populations permanent-populations habitat-patches suitable-habitat ecological-niche case-making-behavior larval-case silk-secretion protein-component genomic-region gene-cluster genomic-resources high-quality-genome shortest-genome variable-quality published-genomes insect-order speciose industrial-application biomaterial natural-material biomimicry conservation water-quality-monitoring environmental-indicator clean-water oxygen-concentration northern-slopes Central-Caucasus rivers-and-streams biology aspects-of-biology reported inhabits final-instar diagnostic-features illustrated discriminatory-matrix Greek-species zoogeography reported-from key-to-larvae revised-key notes-on previously-unknown-larva distinguishes other-British-species larval-habitat adult-identification genetic-differentiation sites population-sizes short-range-trend greater-distances evolutionary-processes small-scales number-of-generations found-small-populations grow-and-exchange-genes larger-scales substantial-gaps regions colonisation-events genetic-patterns last-colonised ecological-studies dynamics persistence-and-spread central-to Martynov-1913 Malicky-1975 Curtis-1834 McLachlan Curtis Navas genus-Stephens-1836 family-Polycentropodidae order-Trichoptera class-Insecta phylum-Arthropoda kingdom-Animalia Eukaryota Hexapoda Hydropsychoidea Polycentropodinae iNaturalist GBIF Catalogue-of-Life NCBI-Taxonomy Wikipedia Zeitschrift-für-Tierpsychologie Freshwater-Biology Zootaxa Genome-Biology-and-Evolution Zoosymposia DOI abstract paper-summary evidence confidence-notes observations-count matched-scientific-name canonical-name rank status accepted match-type higherrank distribution-records genus-of-tube-maker-caddisflies more-than-120-described-species list-of-species references further-reading external-links title journal subjects Zusammenfassung Die-Larven-von leben-in-Fließwässern fängt-mit-einem-Netz-Beute hauptsächlich-Chironomiden-Larven-und-Oligochaeten Wirkung-der-von-der-Beute-im-Netz-erzeugten-Vibrationen Aufmerksamkeit Orientierung-und-Bewegung Fangversuche um-so-schneller verwirrt Baubewegungen Bauverhalten Beutefang enger-Verbindung recruitment kin southern-English-stream objectives small-scale-patterns stream-dwelling spatial-proximity-of-close-kin patchy-recruitment distribution-of-related-larvae aquatic-phase egg-masses spatially-and-temporally-structured-samples field-collected-larvae six-polymorphic-microsatellite-loci siblings progeny-of-one-father background-population-level siblings-disperse changes-in-spatial-genetic-structure neighbouring-larvae avoiding-kin onset-of-pupation survival-through-the-egg-stage first-instar-larvae number-of-egg-masses refute larva-of including larvae-of species-of-Greece morphology final-instar-larva inner-and-outer-dorsal-secondary-setae abdominal-segment-IX muscle-attachment-spots head-capsule abdominal-sternum-IX distribution-patterns annotated-draft-genomes larval-silk-secretions diverse-case-making-behavior ecological-niches five-genomes low-cost-sequencing-strategy Oxford-Nanopore-flow-cell Illumina-sequence-reads high-quality-genomes de-novo-assembly-methods low-coverage-Nanopore-reads shortest-genomes light-L-chain-fibroin L-fibroin-gene-clusters phylogenomic comparative-genomic larvae-of-the-genus other-two-British life-cycle adult genetic-population-structure neighbourhood-population-size-estimates role-of-history scale-of-colonisation structuring-populations genetic-and-ecological-methods no-genetic-differentiation up-to-20-km despite-population-sizes greater-than-expected contrasting-short-range-trend implausibly-small relatively-short-flights winged-adults found-small often-temporary larger-and-more-permanent amplifying regions-containing reduce date-from rarely-examined central biology-of springs high-oxygen-concentration good-indicator water-quality tube-maker-caddisflies genus observations taxonomy-match matched canonical classification Animalia Arthropoda Insecta group caddisflies Metazoa genus-Plectrocnemia list-of-Plectrocnemia-species vibrations-and-predatory-behaviour effects-of-vibrations-transmitted-across-the-net predatory-behaviour variations-in-the-frequency more-marked-effect variations-in-amplitude stage-2 orientation-and-displacement-towards-the-lure stage-3 capture-of-the-lure-with-mandibles larvae-live-in-running-waters catch-with-a-net prey mainly-chironomid-larvae-and-oligochaetes effect-of-vibrations-generated-by-prey-in-the-net very-irregularly-woven-net open-ended-dwelling-tube-at-both-ends vibration-weakly-dampened frequency-does-not-change vibration-excites attention orientation-and-movement capture-attempts orientation-and-movement-to-prey the-faster the-more-the-vibration-exceeds-0.28-Hz frequencies-of-0.15-to-0.28-Hz lead-to-incomplete-reactions as-if-the-larvae-were-confused frequencies-below-0.075-Hz generate-building-movements building-behavior-instead-of-prey-capture closely-connected recruitment-kin-and-spatial-genetic-structure oviposition-and-genetic-relatedness stream-dwelling-caddis beginning-of-the-aquatic-phase four-sample-dates within-one-generation mean-relatedness-coefficient within-reared-egg-masses differed-significantly population-as-a-whole markers-sufficiently-powerful identify-groups-of-siblings small-contribution-from-a-second-male mean-relatedness-within-spatially-structured-groups did-not-differ-from-background siblings-disperse-away-from-each-other kin-structure-does-not-persist changes-in-spatial-genetic-structure-late-in-larval-life neighbouring-larvae-less-closely-related approaching-onset-of-pupation survival-through-egg-stage-and-early-larval-life very-high greater-than-50%non-social-insect consequence-of-colonial-net briefly-occupied-by-first-instar-larvae lack-of-spatial-genetic-structure high-survival refute-patchy-recruitment-hypothesis larva-of-Plectrocnemia-renetta including-discriminatory-matrix larvae-of-Plectrocnemia-Stephens-1836-species-of-Greece morphology-of-final-instar-larva most-important-diagnostic-features-illustrated preliminary-discriminatory-matrix strongly-different-in-length separated-from-each-other muscle-attachment-spots-on-head-capsule number-and-length-of-setae-on-abdominal-sternum-IX reported-from-Cyprus-Turkey-Greek-islands exploit-wide-range-of-ecological-niches five-genomes-published variable-qualities single-Oxford-Nanopore-flow-cell de-novo-assembly-methods-compared assembly-of-low-coverage-Nanopore-reads subsequent-polishing yielded-highest-genome-quality contiguity-and-BUSCO-completeness shortest-genomes-to-date extend-knowledge-of-genome-size genomic-region-encodes-for-light-L-chain-fibroin protein-component-of-larval-caddisfly-silk identified-and-compared new-genomic-resources among-highest-quality-Trichoptera-genomes increase-knowledge basis-for-phylogenomic-and-comparative-genomic-studies revised-key-to-larvae distinguishes-previously-unknown-larva other-two-British-species notes-on-larval-habitat-life-cycle-and-identification-of-adult genetic-population-structure-and-neighbourhood-population-size-estimates role-of-history-and-scale-of-colonisation no-genetic-differentiation-between-sites-up-to-20-km despite-population-sizes-suggesting-genetic-drift genetic-differentiation-between-populations-separated-by-more-than-20-km neighbourhood-population-size-implausibly-small evolutionary-processes-do-not-explain-differentiation relatively-short-flights-by-winged-adults spread-over-number-of-generations found-small-often-temporary-populations grow-and-exchange-genes-with-larger-permanent-local-populations amplify-effects-of-initial-gene-flow substantial-gaps-between-regions-containing-suitable-habitat-patches reduce-number-of-colonisation-events genetic-patterns-may-date-from-time-last-colonised ecological-studies-rarely-examined-dynamics-over-larger-geographical-scales central-to-persistence-and-spread biology-of-Plectrocnemia-latissima rivers-and-streams-of-Central-Caucasus-northern-slopes springs-streams-and-rivers requires-high-oxygen-concentration good-indicator-of-water-quality aspects-of-biology-reported Wikipedia-summary rank-GENUS status-ACCEPTED match-type-HIGHERRANK distribution-records-DK-NO-SE-Vermont-US-US scientific-name authorship-Stephens-1836 classification-Eukaryota-Animalia-Arthropoda-Hexapoda-Insecta-Trichoptera-Hydropsychoidea-Polycentropodidae-Polycentropodinae-Plectrocnemia scientific-name-Plectrocnemia group-caddisflies kingdom-Metazoa instructions fill-all-fields if-a-field-cannot-be-supported-return-null do-not-repeat-information-across-fields keep-each-section-focused-on-its-purpose provide-useful-detail-where-possible critical-rules factual-correctness-over-completeness clarity-over-verbosity usefulness-over-speculation if-information-is-not-clearly-supported-return-null do-not-infer-species-level-traits-from-higher-taxa-unless-explicitly-justified do-not-repeat-the-same-information-across-multiple-fields each-field-must-contain-unique-non-overlapping-content avoid-vague-generalizations like-most-insects typically-feeds-on-plants use-cautious-language-when-necessary has-been-observed is-known-to do-not-fabricate behaviors diet life-cycle-details host-relationships field-intent summary-high-level-overview-3-5-sentences appearance-physical-description-only identification-how-to-distinguish-it-from-similar-taxa habitat-environment-and-conditions distribution-geographic-range-only seasonality-timing-of-activity diet-feeding-habits-null-if-unknown lifeCycle-developmental-stages behavior-notable-actions-or-habits ecologicalRole-role-in-ecosystem humanRelevance-interaction-with-humans similarTaxa-must-include-reason misconceptions-only-if-meaningful extraDetails-only-for-important-additional-context style-rules use-clear-direct-sentences avoid-fluff-or-filler-language avoid-repeating-taxonomy-in-prose avoid-overly-technical-jargon-unless-necessary prefer-concrete-statements-over-abstract-descriptions quality-rules completeness-high-only-if-most-fields-are-well-supported completeness-medium-if-partial-but-reliable completeness-low-if-sparse-data hasInferredContent-true-only-if-generalization-is-used otherwise-false output-format must-strictly-match-provided-JSON-schema do-not-include-any-extra-fields do-not-include-commentary-outside-JSON taxon-record using-provided-schema optional-context-may-be-incomplete source paper-summary-evidence limited-information-extracted-from-abstract-only full-text-not-available-for-more-detailed-extraction habitat-diet-life-cycle-reproduction-behaviors-and-ecosystem-role-not-mentioned-in-abstract distribution-data-limited-to-abstract-level-information full-paper-may-contain-additional-details abstract-only-provided full-text-not-available habitat-diet-and-ecological-details-likely-contained-in-main-paper-but-not-accessible-from-abstract-alone distribution-limited-to-Britain-as-explicitly-stated generate structured-taxon-records entomology-guide accurate-conservative-informative-content prioritize goal produce json schema content summary appearance identification habitat distribution seasonality lifeCycle hostAssociations behavior ecologicalRole humanRelevance similarTaxa misconceptions extraDetails tags completeness hasInferredContent metadata sources sourceQuality extractionMethod extractionDate confidence notes reason name high medium low true false Vibrations-and-Predatory-Behaviour-of-Plectrocnemia-Larvae vibrations net frequency amplitude orientation capture mandibles running-waters dwelling-tube dampened building-movements confused Recruitment-kin-and-the-spatial-genetic-structure-of-a-caddisfly-Plectrocnemia-conspersa microsatellite-loci survival The-larva-of-Plectrocnemia-renetta-Malicky-1975 larva setae abdominal-segment muscle-attachment Ikaria Samos Annotated-Draft-Genomes-of-Two-Caddisfly-Species fibroin Oxford-Nanopore BUSCO A-revised-key-to-larvae-of-the-genus-Plectrocnemia Plectrocnemia-geniculata colonisation dispersal-flights streams rivers 120-described-species Denmark Norway Sweden United-States 204 DK NO SE US taxonomy match kingdom phylum class order family specific-epithet subspecies-epithet subphylum subclass suborder infraorder tribe scientific-name-authorship synonyms common-names content-fields all-fields available-knowledge return-null not-supported unique-non-overlapping focused useful-detail factual correct clear direct no-fluff no-filler no-taxonomy-repetition no-jargon concrete high-completeness medium-completeness low-completeness no-inferred-content strict-JSON no-extra-fields no-commentary entomology insects aquatic vibration genetics population egg pupa instar oxygen Asia America England flowing-water Chironomid oligochaete colonial relatedness sibling Illumina-sequencing annotated silk-protein case-making identification-key morphological diagnostic setal-arrangement muscle-spot abdominal-sternum larval-stage oviposition-site hot-spot survival-rate habitat-patch temporary-population permanent-population winged-adult kin-avoidance refuted water-quality-indicator high-oxygen genus-authority type-species not-specified see-also abstract-only limited-information extraction habitat-not-mentioned diet-not-mentioned life-cycle-not-mentioned reproduction-not-mentioned behaviors-not-mentioned ecosystem-role-not-mentioned distribution-limited abstract-level main-paper additional-details likely-contained not-accessible Britain-explicitly-stated larval-stages-described detailed-extraction predatory captures-prey silken-nets substrate-borne-vibrations chironomid-larvae oligochaetes frequency-effects amplitude-effects orientation-stage capture-stage net-construction confused-responses incomplete-reactions short-range long-range 20-km 500-km colonization-events persistence spread organic-matter material-properties quality genome-size-variation silk-encoding-genes protein-components gene-clusters basis-for-studies distinguishes-species British-species morphological-characteristics taxonomic-revision population-structure neighborhood-size history scale structuring methods differentiation drift trend processes flights generations found grow exchange amplify gaps suitable date examined requires indicator aspects northern slopes Martynov Greek-islands separated-by arrangement number length group-where strongly-different diagnostic-features-illustrated preliminary matrix-provided morphology-of information-on given most-important discriminatory to-the-larvae species-of previously-unknown describes this-paper effects-of-vibrations transmitted-across analyses work this analyses-the-effects variations-in has-a-more-marked-effect especially-on live-in catch-with effect-of generated-by investigated very-irregularly-woven open-at-both-ends weakly-dampened does-not-change excites the-more exceeds lead-to as-if otherwise sometimes-occurs suggests our-objectives examine in-particular look-for any-evidence therefore in-order-to at-the-beginning over-four subsequently-compared reared-from ranged-from indicating-that sufficiently-powerful likely-to-be although could-not-be-excluded did-not-differ suggesting-that very-quickly does-not-persist indicated-that possibly-suggesting some-direct-or-indirect-means when-approaching our-counts suggested-that apparently-very-high may-be-a-consequence all-refute also-provided belong-to can-be-separated with-respect-to has-been-reported members-of provide-important for-example due-to these-form-the-basis only-five published-thus-far with-variable-qualities regarding was-successfully-used of-the compared yielded both-in-terms to-date extend-our-knowledge across was-identified-and-compared with-existing presented-in-this-paper are-among will-increase by-serving-as from-larvae-of are-given-on of-the-adult used-both to-evaluate there-was-no despite given-the implied-that is-implausibly-small do-not-explain at-small-scales could-account-for for-instance may-then over-larger-scales could-reduce may-date-from have-rarely-examined yet-these-processes may-be-central-to from-the-rivers-and-streams aspects-of are-reported-here can-be-used-as high-level-overview 3-5-sentences physical-description-only how-to-distinguish environment-and-conditions geographic-range-only timing-of-activity feeding-habits developmental-stages notable-actions-or-habits role-in-ecosystem interaction-with-humans must-include-reason only-if-meaningful only-for-important-additional-context clear-direct-sentences no-fluff-or-filler no-repeating-taxonomy no-overly-technical-jargon prefer-concrete high-only-if-most-fields-well-supported medium-if-partial-but-reliable low-if-sparse-data true-only-if-generalization-used strictly-match no-commentary-outside-JSON generate-taxon-record taxon Plectrocnemia optional-context may-be-incomplete if-a-field-cannot-be-supported keep-each-section-focused provide-useful-detail factual-correctness clarity verbosity usefulness speculation information-not-clearly-supported do-not-infer-species-level-traits from-higher-taxa unless-explicitly-justified do-not-repeat same-information multiple-fields each-field-must-contain unique-non-overlapping-content use-cautious-language accurate conservative informative structured records scientificName canonicalName scientificNameAuthorship taxonRank commonNames subfamily speciesEpithet subspeciesEpithet

Subscribe to the newsletter

Email address

youtube tiktok snapchat instagram threads facebook twitter

Mike Porter

•

© 2026

•

•

Tailwind Nextjs Theme