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.
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…
5th cell of the Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei) mud nest.
Now to pack the larder… the child has to be fed!
Packing the 5th cell with caterpillars.
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…
and now she was busy constructing the seventh cell…
The Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei) working on the 7th cell in her apartment block.
Well… I missed seeing her fill and seal the doorway of the 7th cell, but the larder looks enticing in the 8th apartment 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!
The 9th cell… build and fill… the skills of the Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei).
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…
Master builder – Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei) — click image to view full screen.
After she has laid her larva in the cell and packed it with caterpillars, the wasp then sealed the entrance to the cell.
The Orange-tailed Potter Wasp filling the cell then seals it — click image to view full screen
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.
Orange-tailed Potter Wasp recycling mud from the old mud nest for the new mud nest.
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…?
The next day, it was late morning… there was an 11th cell in the mud nest… soon to be filled with caterpillars then sealed.
11th cell of the Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei).
This builder does not rest… continuing to build on her architectural wonder… her 12th apartment (cell)…
12th cell of the Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei).
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.
A touch-up to the mud nest facade.
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!
Apartment cell number 13… master builder Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei).
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…
Penthouse apartment cell number 14… by the Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei).
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.
The Penthouse – inspection by the Orange-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta latreillei) — click image to view full screen.
Well what a story… what a hard working mother… I wonder where she is now… maybe building a real estate portfolio… 😀