As a quick post to finish the week, I wanted to share something I learnt more about this weekend, during the annual UCL Biology society trip to Cumberland Lodge. This lodge is the home of a charity of the same name, which creates a space for 'exchanging views and inspiring minds', perfect for a student-led conference.
Under this years' theme Creativity, Communication and Conservation, the key note speaker, Dr Seirian Sumner, had a very important message to share about wasps:
Wasps are diverse, sophisticated and essential.
Yet we hate them...
Thankfully, Dr Sumner is on a mission to change our minds from #wasphate to #wasplove, and here are three (of many) reasons:
One nest will predate between 0.16 and 23kg of insect pests a year, to feed to their larvae. To convert that number into aphids, 250,000 aphids weigh around 0.5kg.
Fun fact: wasp larvae produce sweet syrup for their adults to feed on. At the end of summer, there are only a few larvae left, so to get their sugar fix wasps feed on nectar instead.
There are already 110,000 species described, and probably thousands more waiting to be discovered!
So there you have it, a one minute read stuffed full of amazing facts about wonderful wasps, and containing many seeds of hope. Firstly that wasps are amazing, and secondly that there are spaces such as Cumberland Lodge that encourage deep discussion about the world we live in, and our place within that.
Such an informative article so challenge our perception on wasps! Thank you!