Moth and Chaparral Plant Interaction The relationships between plants and insects are often intricate and complex. One such relationship is that between the yucca plant and the yucca moth.

Female yucca moths have a few days to deposit approximately one hundred eggs. So they fly around, scattering their eggs onto various yucca flowers.

When the moth's larvae hatch they feed on about twenty of the yucca flower's three hundred seeds.

However, if too many larvae hatch inside one flower, the plant will abort the flower and the larvae will die. Therefore, it's to the advantage of the moths to be sure the flowers they deposit their eggs in do not become overloaded with eggs.

When a female moth lands onto a flower she uses her antennae to inspect the flower for the scents of previous female visitors. If one or more moths have already deposited eggs in that flower this visitor will either reduce the number of eggs she lays or move onto another flower.

Order Hymenoptera Hymenoptera is one of the larger orders of insects, comprising the sawflies, wasps, bees, and ants.

The name refers to the membranous wings of the insects, and is derived from the Ancient Greek (humen): membrane and (ptera): wing. The hindwings are connected to the forewings by a series of hooks called hamuli.

The ovipositor is often modified into a stinger.

The young develop through complete metamorphosis The young develop through complete metamorphosis. They have a worm-like larval stage and an inactive pupal stage before they mature.

Among the hymenopterans, sex is determined by the number of chromosomes an individual possesses

This phenomenon is called haplodiploidy Fertilized eggs get two sets of chromosomes (one from each parent's respective gametes), and so develop into diploid females, while unfertilized eggs only contain one set (from the mother), and so develop into haploid males. This phenomenon is called haplodiploidy

One consequence of haplodiploidy is that females on average actually have more genes in common with their sisters than they do with their own daughters. Because of this, cooperation among kindred females may be unusually advantageous, and has been hypothesized to contribute to the multiple origins of eusociality within this order.

Honey Bee

Carpenter Bee

Harvester Ant

Argentine Ants

Paper Wasp

Yellowjacket