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Integrating DNA barcoding, bioclimatic modelling, and habitat analysis to assess the diet and potential spread of Vespula germanica (Fabricius, 1793) in the Western Cape of South Africa
Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2026.
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
2026
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| _version_ | 1867613875645448192 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Molepo, Dikobe Karen |
| author2 | Veldtman, Ruan |
| author_browse | Molepo, Dikobe Karen Veldtman, Ruan |
| author_facet | Veldtman, Ruan Molepo, Dikobe Karen |
| author_sort | Molepo, Dikobe Karen |
| collection | Thesis |
| dc_rights_str_mv | Stellenbosch University |
| description | Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2026. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/136163 |
| institution | Stellenbosch University (South Africa) |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:43:06.129Z |
| license_str | Other — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| publishDateRange | 2026 |
| publishDateSort | 2026 |
| publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| publisherStr | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| spelling | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/136163 Integrating DNA barcoding, bioclimatic modelling, and habitat analysis to assess the diet and potential spread of Vespula germanica (Fabricius, 1793) in the Western Cape of South Africa Molepo, Dikobe Karen Veldtman, Ruan Masehela, Tlou Van Asch, Barbara Daly, Derek Addison, Pia Stellenbosch University. Faculty of AgriSciences. Dept. of Conservation Ecology and Entomology. Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2026. Molepo, D. K. 2026. Integrating DNA barcoding, bioclimatic modelling, and habitat analysis to assess the diet and potential spread of Vespula germanica (Fabricius, 1793) in the Western Cape of South Africa. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University [online]. Available: https://scholar.sun.ac.za/items/4f0094cf-ef33-4e82-bce5-d125ef5f535b Vespula germanica (German wasp) is a highly invasive social wasp species and the most widely distributed worldwide. It presents substantial threats to biodiversity, the economy, and various human social aspects. Vespula germanica preys on and/or competes with native insect species, disrupting ecological food webs and their species’ interactions, listed species, and can also alter the pollination network. Furthermore, the presence of V. germanica leads to increased costs for management and can cause substantial losses in the agricultural sector. Vespula germanica is known for its painful stings with the potential to trigger severe allergic reactions and its aggressive behaviour, especially when defending its nests and it negatively impacts tourism by deterring outdoor activities. In South Africa, within the Western Cape Province where V. germanica has invaded but remain restricted up till now, little is known about some of these factors particularly the predatory pressures it exerts on native biodiversity, especially insect species. To understand the predatory pressures exerted by V. germanica, there was a need to investigate the native insects it preys upon, its temporal abundance and predictions of its potential spread to other regions of the country based on bioclimatic and habitat modelling. To achieve these, prey items of V. germanica were collected using a vacuum sampling method, and identification was carried out both morphologically and molecularly through DNA barcoding. Vespula germanica occurrence records were assessed and the MaxEnt model was used to predict the distribution into other parts of the country under certain bioclimatic variables and habitat parameters. Fisher’s Exact Test, Correspondence Analysis and PERMANOVA were used to explore associations between land use, buffer zones and dependencies between land use, habitat types and dipteran prey families. Pielou’s Evenness and Shannon-Wiener diversity index were used to measure dipteran prey diversity, count, evenness and richness as its major prey type. Vespula germanica was found to prey on a wide range of insect species, mainly members of the dipteran, lepidopteran families and the Apis mellifera species. Vespula germanica occurrence record seem to have increased in areas where V. germanica occurs the past few years and the model predicted V.germanica potential to spread and establish in other parts of the country. This predicted spread wassignificantly influenced by the bioclimatic variable: mean diurnal range in temperature and land use types consisting of trees, crops, built-up and rangeland. Low forest, thicket, dense forest, woodland and open woodland supported the highest dipteran diversity, suggesting that this land use type may offer optimal habitat or prey availability for V. germanica. These findings fill a critical gap in the existing global research by contributing to V. germanica diet variations across different land use and habitat types within the Cape Winelands District Municipality, Western Cape Province of South Africa. The findings will contribute to the understanding of factors influencing the maintenance and spread of V. germanica in invaded regions, as the study predicted the species’ potential future distribution under specific bioclimatic and land use conditions within a Mediterranean climate environment. Ultimately the findings of this study will inform targeted management strategies and eradication plans for V. germanica, in South Africa. Doctoral 2026-04-23T13:51:00Z 2026-04-23T13:51:00Z 2026-03 Thesis https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/136163 en Stellenbosch University 204 pages application/pdf Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| spellingShingle | Molepo, Dikobe Karen Integrating DNA barcoding, bioclimatic modelling, and habitat analysis to assess the diet and potential spread of Vespula germanica (Fabricius, 1793) in the Western Cape of South Africa |
| title | Integrating DNA barcoding, bioclimatic modelling, and habitat analysis to assess the diet and potential spread of Vespula germanica (Fabricius, 1793) in the Western Cape of South Africa |
| title_full | Integrating DNA barcoding, bioclimatic modelling, and habitat analysis to assess the diet and potential spread of Vespula germanica (Fabricius, 1793) in the Western Cape of South Africa |
| title_fullStr | Integrating DNA barcoding, bioclimatic modelling, and habitat analysis to assess the diet and potential spread of Vespula germanica (Fabricius, 1793) in the Western Cape of South Africa |
| title_full_unstemmed | Integrating DNA barcoding, bioclimatic modelling, and habitat analysis to assess the diet and potential spread of Vespula germanica (Fabricius, 1793) in the Western Cape of South Africa |
| title_short | Integrating DNA barcoding, bioclimatic modelling, and habitat analysis to assess the diet and potential spread of Vespula germanica (Fabricius, 1793) in the Western Cape of South Africa |
| title_sort | integrating dna barcoding bioclimatic modelling and habitat analysis to assess the diet and potential spread of vespula germanica fabricius 1793 in the western cape of south africa |
| url | https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/136163 |
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