Hello fellow WaspWatchers!

During 2009 the weather across most the north east was cool and very wet – but this did not prevent some impressive achievements:

• 350 colonies found in Eastern North America.
• 18 States and Provinces using their wasp colonies (each of the 18 States and Provinces now has a designated Cerceris coordinator).
• 3408 Beetles specimens processed (native and introduced species of Buprestidae beetles intercepted at the wasp colonies and identified).
• 7 new State or Provincial Buprestidae Beetle species records (all appear to be native species that had been previously overlooked).
• 105 Cerceris colonies that have been adopted (are being monitored).
• 181 Waspwatchers Trained (general public and government employees).

The following States found large number of NEW Cerceris fumipennis colonies during the summer of 2009: Maine 22, Wisconsin 26, New Hampshire 13, New York 18, North Carolina 15, Vermont 19, Connecticut 70, and Rhode Island 20. Rhode Island also developed a “3rd base theory”: few players get to round third base so at the ball-diamond colonies wasps nesting around are less disturbed and as such the nests are frequent there?

Please see the 2009 Cerceris fumipennis Report (PDF 10.8MB) for further details about the 2009 season.