Author Koh Lin â—¦

Who would have known… that from the first row of single bedroom units — I guess you could call these the ground floor units — an apartment block would be built above them.

I might have gotten blasé about the Potter Wasps, as I see them all the time, and they had built a variety of mud nest before… but this particular build caught my interest, as it was close to eye level at my front door. Already working on her 4th apartment (she had finished capping the other 3 cells). The beautiful Potter Wasp was now filling the larder for her offspring. She wasn’t too picky on the type of caterpillar she brought back… I guess all the kids will get what they are given… a phrase some of us may remember from our childhood. I am sure her offspring’s would not be too choosy… not like when I was growing up and told to eat my greens!

4th cell of the Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei) mud nest filled with prey, Alice Springs NT
4th cell of the Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei) mud nest filled with prey, Alice Springs NT

Anyway, back to the construction works… Not having to deal with other tradies and relying solely on your own building efforts… this hard working mother goes about building her edifice. Her fifth apartment was up within hours… just for you, I thought I would also use the flash, so you could get a peek at the inside of the unit…

Now to pack the larder… the child has to be fed!

I was amazed at the speed of her construction work, the next day, not only had she constructed her sixth cell, but she had filled it and sealed the cell all within the day…

Just sealed 6th cell in mud nest of Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei), Alice Springs NT
The sealed 6th cell in the apartment build…

and now she was busy constructing the seventh cell…

Well… I missed seeing her fill and seal the doorway of the 7th cell, but the larder looks enticing in the 8th apartment cell…

One of the mud nest cells of the Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei) being filled with caterpillars, Alice Springs NT
Filling the larder with caterpillars in the 8th cell.

The ninth apartment was quickly built, a quick flash job (so we can have a sneak peak inside), and now to pack the larder… a kid to be fed!

It was early afternoon and for some reason, I thought I would just open my front door a fraction and peer around the corner… and there she was. I was lucky to capture these shots of our master builder…

After she has laid her larva in the cell and packed it with caterpillars, the wasp then sealed the entrance to the cell.

Did you know that the Orange-tailed Potter Wasp often scavenges mud from old mud nests to use on the new. In the following she collects a ball of mud from the old nest (which is actually on the same wall, close to the ground) and uses it to seal the mud nest of the current cell she is working on.

This mother has worked hard, with the day now turning to dust… she is packing in the last of the caterpillars and putting the finishing touches to the 10th apartment cell…

She finally seals the 10th apartment and maybe her final cell in the mud nest…?

Sealed 10th cell of the Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei), Alice Springs NT
Sealed 10th cell of the Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei).

The next day, it was late morning… there was an 11th cell in the mud nest… soon to be filled with caterpillars then sealed.

This builder does not rest… continuing to build on her architectural wonder… her 12th apartment (cell)…

Wow… it appeared to be almost instantaneous, the Orange-tailed Potter Wasp had covered the “brickwork” of her apartment block with a complete almost grey-coloured mud render.

Well I thought that was it… a job done, an architectural masterpiece completed… but no… there’s MORE… and it looks beautiful… the 13th unit on top of the apartment block!

But wait… there’s even more… the Penthouse…!! atop of the apartment tower, stunning views and breath-taking garden outlook, on top of a magnificent edifice…

The Orange-tailed Potter Wasp has sealed off the penthouse and is inspecting the façade of the apartment block. In a couple of the photos you can see the wasp working with a ball of clay as she applies it to the mud nest.

Well what a story… what a hard working mother… I wonder where she is now… maybe building a real estate portfolio… 😀

Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei) building cell in mud nest, Alice Springs NT

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