DOI: 10.5061/dryad.0vt4b8h80
title: Data from: Solar panels as novel nest sites for the European paper wasp Polistes dominula

description: Solar energy facilities are rapidly expanding in their land use footprint
 worldwide, with significant implications for biodiversity. Although
 impacts are often negative, it is possible for some species to take
 advantage of the novel anthropogenic structures and microhabitats provided
 by solar facilities. We describe the frequent nesting of non-native
 European paper wasps (Polistes dominula) at two solar facilities in the
 Central Valley of California (USA), conducting nest censuses to further
 investigate population density and nest siting behaviour. Active nests
 were found to occur at a density of 10-23 per hectare of solar facility,
 and paper wasps had a preference for nesting in sheltered metal torque
 tubes compared with the more exposed undersides of photovoltaic panels.
 Our study shows that P. dominula might benefit from the
 construction of solar energy facilities, which could have a variety of
 impacts on native species and surrounding agriculture that warrant further
 study. The European paper wasp therefore provides an example to illustrate
 the potential for a varied and relatively unpredictable set of ecological
 outcomes to follow land-use change resulting from solar energy
 development.
description: To estimate wasp nest density at two GPV facilities, we conducted
 censuses by counting all nests of <em>P. dominula</em> along a
 randomly selected set of PV panel strings (rows of panels) in summer 2024.
 At the UC Davis facility 47 panel strings (5% of the total) were counted
 along their entire length between 09:30 and 14:30 on June
 7<sup>th</sup>, July 9<sup>th</sup> and August
 1<sup>st</sup>. At the SacSewer facility, 35 panel strings
 (10% of the total) were counted along their entire length between 08:40
 and 11:30 on July 16<sup>th</sup> and August
 21<sup>st</sup>. Nests were categorized as
 active if at least one live adult wasp was present and inactive if no live
 adult wasps were present at the time of counting. PV panel strings were
 visually inspected for nests, with their location on the structure also
 recorded (torque tube or underside of panel). Reported values are likely
 an underestimate given that we could not fully examine hollow elements of
 the PV string infrastructure (e.g., metal torque tubes within the racking
 infrastructure that support the panels). During the July and August
 censuses, we also recorded the number of live wasps per active nest at
 both facilities by visually counting wasps on each active nest we
 encountered, where visibility permitted complete counting.
description: # Data from: Solar panels as novel nest sites for the European paper wasp
 Polistes dominula
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.0vt4b8h80](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.0vt4b8h80) ## Description of the data and file structure **Nest counts** - We counted all nests of *Polistes dominula* along a randomly selected set of photovoltaic (PV) panel strings (rows of panels) in summer 2024, categorising them as active (at least one live wasp present) or inactive (no live wasps present) and recording their location on the PV infrastructure (torque tube or underside of panels). At the UC Davis facility, we randomly selected 47 panel strings (5% of the facility total) and counted nests along their entire length, with separate counts completed on June 7th, July 9th and August 1st. At the SacSewer facility, we randomly selected 35 panel strings (10% of the facility total) and counted nests along their entire length, with separate counts completed on July 16th and August 21st. **Wasp counts** - During the July and August nest counts at both facilities, we also recorded the number of live wasps per active nest by visually counting wasps on each active nest we encountered, where visibility permitted complete counting. ### Files and variables #### File: Ecology\_and\_Evolution\_wasp\_data.xlsx **Description:**  ##### Variables * Site * Date * Panel_string_number * Nests_tube_active * Nests_tube_inactive * Nests_panel_active * Nests_panel_inactive * Nests_active_total * Nests_inactive_total * Wasps_per_nest ## Code/software Microsoft Excel ## Access information Other publicly accessible locations of the data: * N/A Data was derived from the following sources: * N/A