Term of Award
Spring 2025
Degree Name
Master of Science in Biology (M.S.)
Document Type and Release Option
Thesis (open access)
Copyright Statement / License for Reuse
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Department
Department of Biology
Committee Chair
Jennifer Zettler
Committee Member 1
Sara Gremillion
Committee Member 2
Scott Mateer
Abstract
Strepsiptera are generally described as parasitic castrators as they cause the reproductive death of the hosts. In southeast Georgia, only a handful of paper wasps are hosts for twisted-winged parasites. One such species, Polistes metricus, is parasitized by a twisted-winged parasite, Xenos peckii. Previous studies document that host survivorship at most developmental stages was not largely influenced by the presence of X. peckii. To determine if X. peckii can affect their host’s ability to survive and reproduce, we dissected P. metricus to determine ovary development and the presence of X. peckii parasites. Parasite presence had no effect on the host’s abdominal weight, however, there was a significant effect on ovary development and full body weight in parasitized wasps.
Recommended Citation
Snyder, A. 2025. Parasitism by the twisted-winged parasite Xenos peckii (Strepsiptera), and its effects on the ovary development in their host paper wasp, Polistes metricus (Hymenoptera). Georgia Southern Digital Commons.
Research Data and Supplementary Material
No
