The effects of rearing environment on physiological development of Polistes wasps

Rearing environment may have a significant effect on offspring development. In social insects, this may have a subsequent effect on queen/worker caste determination. Here, we explore the physiological differences, in terms of lipid content, of Polistes fuscatus larvae reared in laboratory and field conditions. Based on previous evidence, we predict that colonies provided ad lib food in the lab will produce fattier larvae than colonies required to forage for their own food in the field. If this prediction holds, the results from this study may have important implications on how data, collected from individuals reared in lab environments, are interpreted.