The subtitle to this wonderful book says it all: The astonishing diversity of a misunderstood insect.
I am quite sure that I am not unlike many who have traditionally viewed bees with equanimity and wasps with dread. It seems almost impossible to induce a bee to sting you (and when it does it pays with its life), but a wasp seems to sting for no reason at all, and what's more is capable of stinging over and over again. And it hurts! Wasps seem just mean!
This amazing book will open your eyes and your mind to wasps in all their incredible diversity, in ways you never dreamed of. They are truly remarkable insects - with multi-faceted lifestyles - and deserve our appreciation and understanding.
To quote directly from the book, "It is a naturally human desire to see other animals as inferior to us, but wasps give us ample reason to call our superiority into doubt. Female wasps are capable of astounding feats of fearlessness, strength, navigation and parental care. Their instincts maintain enough plasticity to allow them to overcome novel problems. They lack a mammalian level of intellect, yet they not only survive, they thrive, in a diversity of ecosystems."
Those that are prone to sting humans give us ample warning by their aposematic colouration, advising quite clearly, "Don't mess with me!' With a little common sense and good judgement, you can almost always avoid situations where a wasp poses a threat.
We should never overlook that wasps are beneficial in our gardens, in controlling populations of caterpillars that are capable of reducing your cabbages to shreds. Many are solitary insects that go about their business unnoticed, inconspicuous by their very nature. Many have no sting - quite unlike the paper wasps and yellowjackets that may find your house a perfect place to raise their young. Most wasps, however, use their sting as a way of subduing prey, not as a weapon of defence.
This book covers every facet of wasp biology, anatomy, habitat, lifestyle, reproduction, abundance, distribution - there is not a single aspect of wasp existence, current or historical, that is not examined in detail. Some of the adaptations employed by different species will amaze you.
At the end of the book there is a "Wasp Family Album" - an excellent reference illustrating the diversity of wasps - a sort of Who's Who of the Hymenoptera aristocracy.
There are tips on wasp watching - safely, and with a view to contributing to scientific knowledge. An excellent glossary is included and a bibliography of eighteen other works enables the keen wasp enthusiast to pursue further study. Computers are the tool of choice for many these days, and online resources are also listed.
I am encouraged to read: "The relationships between people and wasps are likely to become much friendlier in the future, provided we listen to, and trust, scientists. There is no substitute for dedicated study in illuminating the importance of other creatures to our human world."
Amen to that!
Wasps - Princeton University Press
Author: Eric R. Eaton
US$29.95, £25.00 - ISBN: 9780691211428
Published: USA - 9 March 2021
UK - 11 May 2021
256 pages - 150 colour photographs - many colour charts and illustrations
6.13 x 9.25 in. (15.325 x 23.125 cm)
