Phylogeny of the New World Polistes (Hymenoptera: Vespidae; Polistinae, Polistes, Aphanilopterus) Based on Combined Morphological, Molecular and Behavioral Evidence

美国自然历史博物馆的库尔特·M·皮克特博士获得了一项赠款，用于研究Polistes属的行为重要的黄蜂，或普通纸蜂。在Polistes内部，新大陆物种形成了119个物种的谱系，其中许多物种已经成为社会行为的经验和理论研究的基础。虽然这些理论中的许多都是考虑到纸黄蜂的，但它们的适用范围远远超出了黄蜂。由于这些理论中的许多都假设了行为随时间进化的顺序，因此完全理解纸黄蜂的社会行为进化需要物种的进化树。基于分子、解剖学和行为学证据，皮克特博士和他的同事将为这一群体提出一个强有力的进化假说。这一假说不仅将阐明行为多样性的进化，而且还将阐明群体的分类。该项目将发表一系列与社会行为的进化和群体分类有关的科学文章，包括物种的识别钥匙。所有数据、插图和文章都将通过万维网传播。这个项目的产品将在许多方面丰富社区。应用昆虫学家和环境顾问以及研究界将广泛使用该物种的传统和互动检索表。该项目将培训三名本科生先进的分子技术和解剖变异数字档案的准备。一名实习生将接受超过两年的广泛培训，并将参加一个科学大会，在会上她将向科学界报告她的工作。该项目还将为ology网站创建与拟议研究相关的新内容。Ology(http：//ology.amnh.org/)是一个免费的、科学丰富的网站，专为7岁以上的学习者设计，以激发他们对自然世界与生俱来的好奇心。在美国自然历史博物馆，由教育技术员、作家、程序员、设计师和科学家组成的团队完全由内部开发，该学科利用博物馆的藏品、科学家和外联能力，向家中的儿童、学校的教育工作者和图书馆的普通公众提供基于标准的科学教育内容。

A grant has been awarded to Dr. Kurt M. Pickett of the American Museum of Natural History for the study of behaviorally important wasps in the genus Polistes, or common paper wasps. Within Polistes, the New World species form a lineage of 119 species, many of which have been the basis for the empirical and theoretical study of social behavior. While many of these theories have been devised with paper wasps in mind, their applicability extends well beyond wasps. Because many of these theories posit the sequence of behavioral evolution through time, fully understanding the evolution of social behavior in paper wasps requires the evolutionary tree of the species. Based on molecular, anatomical and behavioral evidence, Dr. Pickett and co-workers will produce a robust evolutionary hypothesis for this group. This hypothesis will clarify not only the evolution of a diversity of behaviors, but also the taxonomy of the group. The project will produce a series of scientific articles relating to the evolution of social behavior and the taxonomy of the group, including identification keys to the species. All data, illustrations and articles will be disseminated via the World Wide Web. The products of this project will enrich the community in many ways. Traditional and interactive keys to the species will be of broad use by applied entomologists and environmental consultants as well as the research community. The project will train three undergraduate students in advanced molecular techniques and preparation of digital archives of anatomical variation. One intern will receive extensive training over 2 years, and will attend a scientific congress at which she will report her work to the scientific community. The project will also create new content for the OLogy website related to the proposed research. OLogy (http:// ology.amnh.org/) is a free, science-rich website designed for learners aged 7 and up to spark innate curiosity about the natural world. Developed entirely in-house at the American Museum of Natural History by teams of educational technologists, writers, programmers, designers and scientists, OLogy takes advantage of the Museum's collections, scientists, and outreach capacity to provide standards- based science educational content to children at home, educators in schools, and the general public in libraries.