CLEPTOPARASITISM OF AMMOPHILA HARTI 
(FERNALD) (HYMENOPTERA: SPHECIDAE) 
BY SEN OTA IN I A VI GILA NS ALLEN, WITH 
OBSERVATIONS ON PHROSINELLA AURI FACIES 
DOWNES (DIPTERA: SARCOPHAGIDAE)* 
By Barbara J. Hager and Frank E. Kurczewski 
Department of Environmental and Forest Biology, 
S.U.N.Y. College of Environmental Science and Forestry, 
Syracuse, New York 13210 
Introduction 
Cleptoparasites utilize a host’s food or prey for the rearing of 
their own young (Evans, 1970; Matthews and Matthews, 1978). 
They are often an integral part of fossorial and xylicolous solitary 
wasp nesting aggregations and, as such, have been reported in the 
wasp literature for many years (e.g., Peckham and Peckham, 1898; 
Fabre, 1916; Rau and Rau, 1918; Ristich, 1953, 1956; Evans, 1963, 
1966, 1970; Kurczewski and Harris, 1968; Peckham, 1977; Evans, et 
al., 1980; Wcislo, 1984). Some of the more important cleptopara- 
sites belong to the tribe Miltogrammini (Diptera: Sarcophagidae) 
(Allen, 1926; Evans, 1970), and these may be grouped into two 
categories based on their manner of host-location: (1) hole searchers 
and (2) satellite flies (Ristich, 1956; Evans, 1970). Regardless of 
which host-locating method is employed, cleptoparasites place an 
environmental pressure on the reproduction of the wasps. Wasps 
can reduce the deleterious effects of cleptoparasitism by evolving 
effective counter-cleptoparasitic behaviors (see Spofford, et al., 
1986). Progressive provisioning of nests, in which the female wasp 
provides food to the larva over a period of days and therefore comes 
into close contact with her developing young, is believed to have 
evolved in part as a response to cleptoparasitism (Evans, 1966, 1970; 
Evans and Eberhard, 1970). 
Ammophila harti (Fernald), a simultaneous progressive provi- 
sioned was found in association with two miltogrammine clepto- 
parasites; Senotainia vigilans Allen and Phrosinella aurifacies 
* Manuscript received by the editor April 24, 1985. 
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