1968] 
Matthews — Microstigmus 
27 
NUMBER OF NESTS 
PER PLANT 
Fig. 2. Distribution of Crysophila palms and M. comes nests in the 
study plot near Rincon, Costa Rica. Each symbol represents a single 
Crysophila plant. 
and “wholly predominated in the pedicel which looked whitish in 
consequence”. However, lack of differential coloration in the secre- 
tion and plant fibers obscured such a distinction in M. comes. 
The source of this translucent material is unknown; however, 
wasps frequently worked up and down the pedicel and about the 
entrance, stroking and tamping these areas with thrusts of the 
abdomen (see Nest Maintenance and Defense, below). Examina- 
tion of the abdomen tip reveals a dense brush-like cluster of hollow, 
