Violent Behavior by Workers in an Old World Swarm-founding Paper Wasp, Ropalidia romandi (Hymenoptera, Vespidae)

Workers of the Australian swarm-founding paper wasp, Ropalidia romandi, behaved aggressively against queens on a nest that was just initiated by an absconding swarm that comprised wasps of artificially united two colonies. Although the definite function and cause of this violent behavior of workers are unknown, this finding may explain the presence of queens with badly injured wings in natural colonies.