INSECTS
Wasps : Unnecessarily bad reputation
If a bee is a beneficial insect that produces honey and beeswax and pollinates flowers , a wasp is just a damned nuisance , right ? Wrong ! In fact , wasps can be beneficial on a plot as they kill an enormous number of other pests , including flies , caterpillars and , in some cases , cockroaches . Moreover , some wasps are important pollinators . Due to their high-energy needs , wasps also feed on nectar from a variety of flowers and are valuable pollinators in gardens and orchards . However , pollinator wasps are not likely to be found in Gauteng , as they more common to the arid and semi-arid regions of South Africa where certain types of fynbos flourish . Wasps belong to the
Hymenoptera insect order , along with over 100 000 other insects , including bees . Although there a many species of wasps , the wasps which are seen more often and which are more likely to build a nest where they are not welcome will exhibit similar physical characteristics . Adult wasps vary in length from 10 to 20 mm . The head is triangular in shape and has two compound eyes and a set of antennae . The wasp also has several single eyes referred to as ocelli . The most noticeable mouthparts are the mandibles , or jaws . These are hard curved appendages of considerable strength . The most noticeable difference between a bee and a wasp is the shape of the body . Wasps ' bodies are slender with a narrow waist connecting the thorax and abdomen , which , in the female houses the sting . Like all insects the wasp has six legs , which each have two joints , enabling flexibility , so that the wasp can grasp whatever it lands on . Two pairs of transparent wings are attached to the wasp ' s body at the thorax . The thin membranous appearance of the wings is what lends the wasp the classification of Hymenoptera . The other main difference between a bee and wasp is that the bee is furry , while the body of the wasp is smooth and hard . Colours of wasps vary from brown , white , black and yellow to brilliant metallic colours such as green , blue , red or combinations of these . Wasps are categorised as parasitic wasps , solitary hunting wasps and social wasps . Parasitic wasps lay their eggs in or on some insects . Often the mother will sting the hapless cockroach , spider , beetle , stick insect or caterpillar , but the insect does not die . The wasp larva develops on or inside the unfortunate host and once it has developed into a pupa it will eat the host . Some wasps also lay their eggs in the nests of bees or other wasps . When
Common wasp
the eggs hatch they feed on the host ' s egg or larva and then on the provision laid in for the host ' s larva . The egg of the cuckoo wasp is generally introduced into the host ' s cell whilst cell provisioning is taking place . In the case of the solitary hunting wasps , the female creates rearing cells in some sort of nest , goes out and collects prey that she
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