[4] Additionally, the wasp is known for eating the eggs of red eyed tree frogs as a main way of subsistence.
[2] The eusocial characteristics seen in this wasp species are the presence of cooperative brood care, division of labor between non-reproductive and reproductive individuals, and overlapping of generations in the colony.
[1] The typical climate that P. rejecta occupies in the Atlantic forest of Brazil is hot and humid.
[3] Polybia rejecta has been found in the vicinity of a species of frogs called A. callidryas in the Brazilian Amazon region.
[4] Polybia rejecta has an almost completely black body that separates itself due to its sting autotomy.
This association was studied in the Parque Estadual do Rio Doce, where twelve colonies of P. rejecta were observed.
All of the twelve nests found and observed were associated with the Azteca chartifex, meaning that there must be some kind of benefit for both the wasps and the ants.
It was concluded that the wasp's aggressive behavior likely protects the ants from any mammalian, bird or snake predators that try to approach the nest.
[3] The first published description about this interaction between P. rejecta and A. chartifex was from William D. Hamilton, and may be found in the Chapter 8 (Volume 1) of the book Narrow Roads of Gene Land (1996, Freeman Spektrum).
Among this group the castes can be noticed by simply looking at the size of the queens versus the workers as determined by using the Wilk's Lambda range.
This means the distinction in body size is a result of the individual being reproductively capable or non-reproductive.
This difference in ovary size is also seen in the wasp species Chartergus mentanotalis, Epipona tatua, and Polybia liliacea.
The vegetation that frogs attach their eggs to typically hangs over a water source, making them susceptible to attack by arboreal and aerial predators.
P. rejecta are known for their predation of soft bodied arthropods, especially lepidopteran larvae and anuran embryos.
The wasp has also been found to attack other frog eggs of the species A. saltator in Costa Rica.
[5] The cacique birds in Central Brazilian Amazon have been found to associate their nests with those of P. rejecta.
The social wasps defend their nests by inflicting painful stings and bites onto whatever predator is attacking them.
[4] Wrens are another bird that associate with P. rejecta wasps in order to gain protection against predators.
With wrens, predation is the primary cause of nest failure; in particularly they are attacked by white faced monkeys.
In an attempt to avoid predators many birds will build their nests in inconspicuous or inaccessible places, but this is not always a successful method of protection.
There was a significant increase in the success rate of fledging after the association with which occurs as a result of the presence of wasps.
[13] Polybia rejecta participates in a self-destructive defensive behavior called sting autotomy.
Altruistic self-removal is the defense by the workers in order to protect their queen even if that means death.
Wasps that do not display this type of autotomy have abdominal muscles that prevent this bodily separation from occurring.