Dr Jennifer Jandt, Our People, Department of Zoology

Email jenny.jandt@otago.ac.nz
Tel +64 3 479 7608
Web:

Teaching

Research interests

Behavioural ecology and evolution of social insects
Development and function of personality differences in social insects – individuals and colonies
Mechanisms that facilitate the evolutionary shift from solitary to social behaviour in Vespid wasps
Environmental influences (e.g., climate) on development and performance of bees and wasps
German yellowjacket biology, invasiveness, and population structures
Group behavioural patterns applied to swarm robotics

Publications

Jandt, J. M., Barratt, B. I. P., Dickinson, K. J. M., McCombe, G. G. I., Tully, J., & Lord, J. M. (2025). The impact of floral diversity on bumblebee colony development and pollination efficacy among foragers. Apidologie, 56, 24. doi: 10.1007/s13592-025-01150-7 Journal - Research Article

Busch, M. J., & Jandt, J. M. (2024). Behaviour and physiology of the common wasp, Vespula vulgaris. Proceedings of the 72nd Entomological Society of New Zealand (ESNZ) Conference. Retrieved from https://ento.org.nz/ Conference Contribution - Published proceedings: Abstract

McLean, C. E., McKinlay, P., & Jandt, J. M. (2024). BEE Creative: Participatory art + science. Proceedings of the 72nd Entomological Society of New Zealand (ESNZ) Conference. Retrieved from https://ento.org.nz/ Conference Contribution - Published proceedings: Abstract

Lau, O. L., McLean, C., & Jandt, J. (2024). Bee Aware Day 2023: A recipe for planning public science outreach. Proceedings of the 72nd Entomological Society of New Zealand (ESNZ) Conference. Retrieved from https://ento.org.nz/ Conference Contribution - Published proceedings: Abstract

Ni, S., McCulloch, G. A., Kroos, G. C., King, T. M., Dutoit, L., Foster, B. J., Hema, K., Jandt, J. M., Peng, M., Dearden, P. K., & Waters, J. M. (2024). Human-driven evolution of color in a stonefly mimic. Science, 386(6270), 453-458. doi: 10.1126/science.ado5331 Journal - Research Article

2025

Journal - Research Article

2024

Journal - Research Article

Jandt, J. M., McCall, E., & Toth, A. L. (2024). Native Polistes wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) hold potential as biocontrol agents for lepidopteran pests of Brassica. Journal of Economic Entomology. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1093/jee/toae146

Grey, L., Holwell, G. I., Jandt, J. M., & Johnson, S. (2024). Weapon allometry and shape variation in the Helm's stag beetle (Geodorcus helmsi). Biological Journal of the Linnean Society. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1093/biolinnean/blae024

Conference Contribution - Published proceedings: Abstract

2023

Journal - Research Article

Detoni, M., Johnson, S. L., Adams, C. I. M., Bengston, S., & Jandt, J. M. (2023). Older, but not wiser: Social wasp colony defensive behavior decreases with time, not experience. Insectes Sociaux, 70, 81-96. doi: 10.1007/s00040-022-00893-1

Journal - Research Other

Jandt, J. (2023). Insects and spiders make up more than half NZ's animal biodiversity: Time to celebrate these spineless creatures. The Conversation. Retrieved from https://theconversation.com/insects-and-spiders-make-up-more-than-half-nzs-animal-biodiversity-time-to-celebrate-these-spineless-creatures-195450

Conference Contribution - Published proceedings: Abstract

Thomas, L., Holwell, G. I., Jandt, J., & Johnson, S. (2023). Who wins in competitive interactions between males of the iconic New Zealand stag beetle, Geodorcus helmsi? Proceedings of the 71st Entomological Society of New Zealand (ESNZ) Conference. (pp. 44). Retrieved from https://ento.org.nz/

Jandt, J. M., McLean, C., & Evans, L. E. (2023). Pollinator performance and cognition in semi-natural simple or complex floral environments. Proceedings of the 71st Entomological Society of New Zealand (ESNZ) Conference. (pp. 34). Retrieved from https://ento.org.nz/

2022

Journal - Research Article

Chen, J. P. L., Dickinson, K. J. M., Barratt, B. I. P., & Jandt, J. M. (2022). Beetle (Coleoptera) communities inside and outside the pest-resistant fencing of a New Zealand ecosanctuary. New Zealand Entomologist, 45(1-2), 17-34. doi: 10.1080/00779962.2022.2120594

Neupert, S., Jandt, J. M., & Szyszka, P. (2022). Sugar alcohols have the potential as bee-safe baits for the common wasp. Pest Management Science, 78, 3005-3011. doi: 10.1002/ps.6925

Perry, B. J., Mohammadi Darestani, M., Ara, M. G., Hoste, A., Jandt, J. M., Dutoit, L., … Ingram, T., & Geoghegan, J. L. (2022). Viromes of freshwater fish with lacustrine and diadromous life histories differ in composition. Viruses, 14(2), 257. doi: 10.3390/v14020257

2020

Journal - Research Article

Jandt, J. M., Detoni, M., Loope, K. J., & Santoro, D. (2020). Vespula wasps show consistent differences in colony-level aggression over time and across contexts. Insectes Sociaux, 67(3), 367-381. doi: 10.1007/s00040-020-00768-3

Lamb, S. D., McCombe, G. G. I., Lawrence, E., Macwan, R., Mayer, T., & Jandt, J. M. (2020). Subterranean nesting behaviour in response to soil moisture conditions in the southern ant, Monomorium antarcticum Smith (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). New Zealand Entomologist, 43(1), 33-43. doi: 10.1080/00779962.2020.1764700

Iwasaki, J. M., Barratt, B. I. P., Jandt, J. M., Jowett, T. W. D., Lord, J. M., Mercer, A. R., & Dickinson, K. J. M. (2020). Honey bees do not displace foraging bumble bees on nectar-rich artificial flowers. Apidologie, 51, 137-146. doi: 10.1007/s13592-019-00690-z

2019

Journal - Research Article

Walton, A., Jandt, J. M., & Dornhaus, A. (2019). Guard bees are more likely to act as undertakers: Variation in corpse removal in the bumble bee Bombus impatiens. Insectes Sociaux, 66, 533-541. doi: 10.1007/s00040-019-00718-8

2018

Journal - Research Other

Miller, S. E., Bluher, S. E., Bell, E., Cini, A., Carvalho da Silva, R. C., Rodrigues de Souza, A., … Jandt, J., … Sheehan, M. J. (2018). WASPnest: A worldwide assessment of social Polistine nesting behavior [Data paper]. Ecology, 99(10), 2405. doi: 10.1002/ecy.2448

2017

Journal - Research Article

Jandt, J. M., Suryanarayanan, S., Hermanson, J. C., Jeanne, R. L., & Toth, A. L. (2017). Maternal and nourishment factors interact to influence offspring developmental trajectories in social wasps. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 284(1857), 20170651. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2017.0651

2016

Journal - Research Article

Jandt, J. M., & Gordon, D. M. (2016). The behavioral ecology of variation in social insects. Current Opinion in Insect Science, 15, 40-44. doi: 10.1016/j.cois.2016.02.012

2015

Chapter in Book - Research

Jandt, J. M., & Toth, A. L. (2015). Physiological and genomic mechanisms of social organization in wasps (Family: Vespidae). In A. Zayed & C. F. Kent (Eds.), Advances in insect physiology (Vol. 48). (pp. 95-130). London, UK: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/bs.aiip.2015.01.003

Journal - Research Article

Jandt, J. M., Thomson, J. L., Geffre, A. C., & Toth, A. L. (2015). Lab rearing environment perturbs social traits: A case study with Polistes wasps. Behavioral Ecology, 26(5), 1274-1284. doi: 10.1093/beheco/arv082

Sheehan, M. J., Botero, C. A., Hendry, T. A., Sedio, B. E., Jandt, J. M., Weiner, S., … Tibbetts, E. A. (2015). Different axes of environmental variation explain the presence vs. extent of cooperative nest founding associations in Polistes paper wasps. Ecology Letters, 18(10), 1057-1067. doi: 10.1111/ele.12488

McGlynn, T. P., Graham, R., Wilson, J., Emerson, J., Jandt, J. M., & Jahren, A. H. (2015). Distinct types of foragers in the ant Ectatomma ruidum: Typical foragers and furtive thieves. Animal Behaviour, 109, 243-247. doi: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2015.08.024

Jandt, J. M., Hunt, E. M., & McGlynn, T. P. (2015). Intraspecific food-robbing and neighborhood competition: Consequences for anti-robber vigilance and colony productivity. Biotropica, 47(4), 491-496. doi: 10.1111/btp.12234

2014

Journal - Research Article

Jandt, J. M., Tibbetts, E. A., & Toth, A. L. (2014). Polistes paper wasps: A model genus for the study of social dominance hierarchies. Insectes Sociaux, 61(1), 11-27. doi: 10.1007/s00040-013-0328-0

Jandt, J. M., Bengston, S., Pinter-Wollman, N., Pruitt, J. N., Raine, N. E., Dornhaus, A., & Sih, A. (2014). Behavioural syndromes and social insects: Personality at multiple levels. Biological Reviews, 89(1), 48-67. doi: 10.1111/brv.12042

Jandt, J. M., & Dornhaus, A. (2014). Bumblebee response thresholds and body size: Does worker diversity increase colony performance? Animal Behaviour, 87, 97-106. doi: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2013.10.017

Bengston, S. E., & Jandt, J. M. (2014). The development of collective personality: The ontogenetic drivers of behavioral variation across groups. Frontiers in Ecology & Evolution, 2, 81. doi: 10.3389/fevo.2014.00081

Conference Contribution - Published proceedings: Abstract

Jandt, J., Jeanne, R., Hermanson, J., & Toth, A. (2014). Epigenetic maternal effects on caste development in Polistes wasps. Proceedings of the International Union for the Study of Social Insects International Congress. (pp. 57). Retrieved from http://www.iussi.org/

Jandt, J., & Toth, A. (2014). The effects of rearing environment on physiological development of Polistes wasps. Proceedings of the International Union for the Study of Social Insects International Congress. (pp. 211). Retrieved from http://www.iussi.org/

2013

Journal - Research Article

Jandt, J., Larson, H. K., Tellez, P., & McGlynn, T. P. (2013). To drink or grasp? How bullet ants (Paraponera clavata) differentiate between sugars and proteins in liquids. Naturwissenschaften, 100(12), 1109-1114. doi: 10.1007/s00114-013-1109-3

2012

Journal - Research Article

Jandt, J. M., Robins, N. S., Moore, R. E., & Dornhaus, A. (2012). Individual bumblebees vary in response to disturbance: A test of the defensive reserve hypothesis. Insectes Sociaux, 59(3), 313-321. doi: 10.1007/s00040-012-0222-1

2011

Journal - Research Article

Couvillon, M. J., Jandt, J. M., Bonds, J., Helm, B. R., & Dornhaus, A. (2011). Percent lipid is associated with body size but not task in the bumble bee Bombus impatiens. Journal of Comparative Physiology A, 197(11), 1097-1104. doi: 10.1007/s00359-011-0670-5

Jandt, J. M., & Dornhaus, A. (2011). Competition and cooperation: Bumblebee spatial organization and division of labor may affect worker reproduction late in life. Behavioral Ecology & Sociobiology, 65(12), 2341-2349. doi: 10.1007/s00265-011-1244-9

Journal - Research Other

Bengston, S. E., Jandt, J., & Dornhaus, A. (2011). [Review of the book Food exploitation by social insects: Ecological, behavioral, and theoretical approaches]. Quarterly Review of Biology, 86(4), 359.

2010

Journal - Research Article

Couvillon, M. J., Jandt, J. M., Duong, N., & Dornhaus, A. (2010). Ontogeny of worker body size distribution in bumble bee (Bombus impatiens) colonies. Ecological Entomology, 35(4), 424-435. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2311.2010.01198.x

Jandt, J. M., Taylor, B., & Jeanne, R. L. (2010). Temperature and forager body size affect carbohydrate collection in German yellowjackets, Vespula germanica (Hymenoptera, Vespidae). Insectes Sociaux, 57(3), 275-283. doi: 10.1007/s00040-010-0082-5

Awarded Doctoral Degree

Jandt, J. M. (2010). Mechanisms of organization in social insects: The influences of spatial allocation, dominance interactions, and worker variation in bumble bees (PhD). University of Arizona. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/10150/193522

2009

Journal - Research Article

Jandt, J. M., & Dornhaus, A. (2009). Spatial organization and division of labour in the bumblebee Bombus impatiens. Animal Behaviour, 77(3), 641-651. doi: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2008.11.019

Jandt, J. M., Huang, E., & Dornhaus, A. (2009). Weak specialization of workers inside a bumble bee (Bombus impatiens) nest. Behavioral Ecology & Sociobiology, 63(12), 1829-1836. doi: 10.1007/s00265-009-0810-x

2007

Conference Contribution - Published proceedings: Abstract

Jandt, J. M. (2007). In-nest task specialization in the bumble bee Bombus impatiens. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of America (ESA) Annual Meeting. Retrieved from https://esa.confex.com/esa/2007/techprogram/paper_29735.htm

2005

Journal - Research Article

Jandt, J. M., Curry, C., Hemaur, S., & Jeanne, R. L. (2005). The accumulation of a chemical cue: Nest-entrance trail in the German yellowjacket, Vespula germanica. Naturwissenschaften, 92(5), 242-245. doi: 10.1007/s00114-005-0613-5

Jandt, J. M., & Jeanne, R. L. (2005). German yellowjacket (Vespula germanica) foragers use odors inside the nest to find carbohydrate food sources. Ethology, 111(7), 641-651. doi: 10.1111/j.1439-0310.2005.01088.x

Jandt, J. M., Riel, L., Crain, B., & Jeanne, R. L. (2005). Vespula germanica foragers do not scent-mark carbohydrate food sites. Journal of Insect Behavior, 18(1), 19-31. doi: 10.1007/s10905-005-9344-x