A Third Contribution on the Trophic Relationships of Eumenine Wasps (Hymenoptera, Vespidae: Eumeninae) with Angiosperm Plants in Crimea

Forty-three new flower visiting records for 22 species of eumenine wasps in Crimea are reported. The plant families Orobanchaceae and Tamaricaceae as well as nine plant species are recorded as sources of nectar for eumenine wasps in Crimea for the first time. Taking into account the previously published data, trophic relationships are known for 59 eumenine-wasp species in Crimea; eumenine wasps were recorded in Crimea feeding at flowers of 130 plant species from 35 families. The largest numbers of food plant species belong to the families Apiaceae, Asteraceae (18 each), and Lamiaceae (16). The largest numbers of wasp species are recorded at flowers of the same three families (28, 24, and 33 species, respectively). Among individual plant species, the largest numbers of visiting wasp species were recorded for Lotus herbaceus (Vill.) Jauzein (18), Limonium scoparium (Pall. ex Willd.) H. Arnaud (15), Scrophularia oblongifolia Loisel. (13), Mentha longifolia (12), and Nigella arvensis L. (11). The nectar-robbing eumenine wasps are discussed. Worldwide, nectar robbing is currently known for 26 eumenine-wasp species (13 of them in Crimea); primary nectar robbing is confirmed for 14 species (3 of them in Crimea). There are 37 species of plants (18 of them in Crimea) from 13 families (8 of them in Crimea) known to be robbed by the eumenine wasps. We speculate that the nectar-robbing phenomenon is distributed among the eumenine wasps much more widely than it was previously assumed.