Where the UK"s wasps have gone and why they need your help
I get twitchy about taking holidays at the end of August, because it's the only time of year when people (and the media) in the UK seem to want to talk about wasps and I have spent my career trying to change people's minds about these fascinating ins.....»»
Wasps able to tell the difference between "same" and "different"
A trio of researchers at the University of Michigan has found that paper wasps are able to distinguish between things that are the same or things that are different. In their paper published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, Chloe Weise, Christi.....»»
Five facts about the gruesome beauty of solitary wasps
Most people recognize a wasp as those stripy insects who ruin our summer picnics. They live in huge societies, much the same as the honeybee; you might even have a nest in your loft or shed. But there's a lot more to wasps than these socialites. In f.....»»
Parasitic wasps turn other insects into "zombies," saving millions of humans along the way
Wasps have a reputation for being jerks because of their perceived aggressiveness and ability to sting repeatedly. They're often negatively compared with the honey production and agricultural pollination of bees......»»
New mechanism of parasitoid wasps in avoiding intraspecific competition
Parasitic wasps are natural enemies for effective control over the population of pests in nature. Hence, they are extensively used as green agents of pest control in agriculture and forestry. There are a diversity of parasitic wasps, which have assor.....»»
As autumn approaches here"s why we see more spiders in our houses and why wasps are desperate for sugar
The tell-tale signs that autumn is here are clear to us; the days are getting shorter and the temperature is decreasing. We take this as a sign to pull out our winter woolies and think about turning on the radiators. But how do insects know that wint.....»»
Evolutionary chaos as butterflies, wasps, and viruses have a three-way war
The evolutionary pressures result in some pretty complicated host interactions. Enlarge (credit: iStock / Getty Images) We're currently watching—often in horror—what happens as a virus and its hosts engage in an evolutionary arms race. Me.....»»
Caterpillars borrow weapons from viruses in battle against parasitic wasps
Exactly how the caterpillars are winning this tiny evolutionary arms race is the subject of an article just published in the journal Science by an international research team including scientists from University of Saskatchewan (USask)......»»
Study: Native, city-living bees and wasps thrive in large green spaces, flowering prairies
Converting vacant urban lots into greenspaces can reduce blight and improve neighborhoods, and new research shows that certain types of such post-industrial reclamation efforts offer the added bonus of benefiting bees......»»
Beneficial arthropods find winter sanctuary in uncultivated field edges, study finds
Many species of ground-dwelling beetles, ladybugs, hoverflies, damsel bugs, spiders and parasitic wasps kill and eat pest species that routinely plague farmers, including aphids and corn rootworm larvae and adults. But the beneficial arthropods that.....»»
French "bug farm" thrives on demand for pesticide-free fruit
Farmers in western France are doubling down on an unusual crop: breeding millions of tiny predatory bugs and wasps to protect tomato plants without resorting to the insecticides that consumers are shunning......»»
What’s the Point of Wasps, Anyway?
A new study says the reviled stinging insects play a critical ecological role—and their venom might even be useful to people......»»
Wasps are valuable for ecosystems, economy and human health (just like bees)
Wasps deserve to be just as highly valued as other insects, like bees, due to their roles as predators, pollinators, and more, according to a new review paper led by UCL and University of East Anglia researchers......»»
Wasps "could be just as valuable as bees if we give them the chance"
Wasps could be just as valuable as bees for their contribution to ecosystems, according to research......»»
Defensive symbiosis leads to gene loss in bacterial partners
Antibiotics on the cocoon protect the offspring of beewolves, a group of digger wasps, from detrimental fungi. These protective substances are produced by symbiotic bacteria of the genus Streptomyces, which live in these insects. In a new study in PN.....»»
Social wasps lose face recognition abilities in isolation
Just as humans are challenged from the social isolation caused by the coronavirus pandemic, a new study finds that a solitary lifestyle has profound effects on the brains of a social insect: paper wasps......»»
"Bug brain soup" expands menu for scientists studying animal brains
Using a surprisingly simple technique, researchers in the University of Arizona Department of Neuroscience have succeeded in approximating how many brain cells make up the brains of several species of bees, ants and wasps. The work revealed that cert.....»»
New wasp species discovered in Norway
Cuckoo wasps—also called emerald wasps—are some of the most beautiful insects we have, with colorful exteriors that shine like jewels. However, these beauties have also created a lot of headaches......»»
Pioneering research reveals gardens are secret powerhouse for pollinators
Home gardens are by far the biggest source of food for pollinating insects, including bees and wasps, in cities and towns, according to new research......»»
Tropical paper wasps babysit for neighbors
Wasps provide crucial support to their extended families by babysitting at neighboring nests, according to new research by a team of biologists from the universities of Bristol, Exeter and UCL published today in Nature Ecology and Evolution......»»
Pollinator host-switches and fig hybridization dominate fig-wasp coevolution
The genus Ficus (figs) and their agaonid pollinating fig wasps are a classic example of coevolution. It represents perhaps the most extreme and ancient (about 75 million years) obligate pollination mutualism known......»»