This video came from FYFD (fyfluiddynamics.com), which has the introductory note:
Personally, I’ve had some bad encounters with wasps, but Dr. Adrian Smith of Ant Lab feels the insects receive short shrift. In this video, he shows many species in the order — most of which are venomless and stingless. In high-speed video, their flight is mesmerizing. Wasps have separate fore- and hindwings, but during flight, they move them like a single wing. Velcro-like hooks on the edges of the wings hold the two together.
From a mechanics perspective, I find this fascinating. Aerodynamically, I’d expect much greater benefits from one large wing over two small ones, but outside of flight, separate wings are more easily tucked away. It’s so neat that wasps have a way to enjoy the benefits of both, enabled by a simple but secure line of hooks. (Video and image credit: Ant Lab/A. Smith)
As I recall, but can’t be arsed to check, insects evolved with four wings at the start, and two-winged insects evolved later, with some converting their wings into balance organs (halteres, as in Drosophila) or wing covers (elytra, like the wing covers of beetles). That’s why wasps had to evolved a velcro-like structure to keep their wings together.
The photography here is marvelous. Try to figure out how some wasps can detect a the larvae of a wood-boring insect inside a tree, and then use their ovipositors to inject an egg into the hapless insect through the wood. They have to be accurate, and do this through a substantial thickness of wood.
h/t: Erik
Strepsiptera have also reduced wings. Females are always wingless, but males have reduced fore wings and instead, as in flies, halteres. Bees also have these hooks called hamuli on their wings to combine fore and hind wing during flight.
Fascinating film, thanks. Terrific photography.
When I see the word ‘parasite’ I think of Stephen Fry’s comments on Gay Byrne’s show where he asked what ‘god’ would allow parasites to take a child’s eyesight. It was years ago, but it stayed with me.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-suvkwNYSQo
Amazing footage!
That said, the first thing that comes to mind when I think about wasps is an experience I had mowing the grass when I lived in rural Virginia. It was hot and sunny outside. Humid, too. And the brush field that surrounded our house—our “yard”—desperately needed mowing. I had a walk-behind Gravely tractor with a bush hog attachment—perfect for doing the job. To protect against the sun and noise of the machine I cocooned myself in a hat, eye-protection over my sunglasses, thick boots, and ear muffs.
As I was mowing along, manhandling the tractor in my isolated state I suddenly felt burning pains around my ankles. Looking down through my fogged goggles and sunglasses, I discovered that I was being attacked by dozens of yellow jackets (Vespula germanica)! I must have run over their hidden ground nest. Instinctively, I put my tractor into neutral—so it didn’t keep going!—and started running and screaming, the former to try to escape the attack and the latter because there’s no free will. Fortunately, I endured only a half-dozen stings.
I have read that a major does of venom like that can cause future stings to become deadly. So, I can admire wasps—the stinging ones—in a video, but I steer clear of them in the flesh.
Three pairs of wings, although the anteriormost prothoracic wings were smaller lobes and maybe for gliding and not articulated for flapping flight.
https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822%2816%2931461-0
Very good. As a rule, stinging wasps away from their nests are not aggressive. But they don’t understand what you are, and may blunder into you by accident when disturbed.
Video of the day. Have forwarded to my son who already views flying insects as horrifying but with the parasitism it goes to a whole new level!
Wasps rule! There is a trend in insects to having a single functional pair of wings for flying. Beetle forewings are now thickened elytra, lepidopterans couple their wings together in a few different ways, hymenopterans have hamuli to couple the wings, and flies have reduced their hind wings to halteres. There is good evidence insect wings are derived from pancrustacean leg segments (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-020-01349-0).
Amazing! I didn’t know they had Velcro on their wings.
That was interesting and, as mentioned, fantastic photography!
I’m so glad that people put such wonderfully composed videos on YouTube.
It’s also wonderful to see these guys flying about and know they are specific wasps – and that sweeping wing flow will leap to mind.
Ant Lab tends to pretty awesome. I don’t follow the channel (too much in the world fascinates me already) but I always go to highlighted videos from those people I do follow
If you didn’t dig: (from YT about for Ant Lab)
“Ant Lab is the channel of the Evolutionary Biology & Behavior Research Lab at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences & North Carolina State University. It’s headed by Dr. Adrian Smith, who makes most of these videos.”
Great video! Thanks for sharing.