Wonderful Wasps

Wasps are necessary creatures. If it weren't for little tiny wasps, there wouldn't be any figs, because a fig is an inside-out flower that needs in-dwelling wasps to pollinate it. Parasitic wasps lay their eggs in other creatures, including spiders, and keep their populations in balance. Nest-building wasps showed humans how to make paper out of wood. And if you just stay cool around wasps, and don't fuss or flap, you’re very unlikely to get stung.

Germaine Greer

Probably the easiest question I ever get asked as a naturalist is; "what is the point of wasps?"! Well, where do I start! Wasps are some of the most fascinating creatures on the planet; there are species that parasitise other insects, that catch insects on the wing or pluck pests from our plants. Some are solitary, and may lay their eggs in spiders or caterpillars, others live in highly co-ordinated and complex communities, functioning in brain-bending unison to realise common aims. I'm not just endlessly fascinated by wasps, I LOVE wasps!

Steve Backshall

If there is one phrase that makes me mad it's 'What is the point of wasps!' If everything has to have a point then for wasps there is so much more to them than that famous point on the end of their abdomens - get past the sting (that they most rarely use to harm us) and you enter a world of intrigue - they are great recyclers, pollinators, pest control agents and above all they carry out their services in a vibrant buzz of colour and energy - wasps are among my favourite creatures because of these reasons and many more.

Nick Baker