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A
new wasp species discovered
in the Amazon has an exceptionally large sting that surprised even scientists.
The new insect, which lies in the extremely diverse transition zone between the Andes and the Amazon rainforest, uses its sting to both spawn and inject venom.
The sting of the new parasitoid wasp called
Clistopyga crassicaudata
is not only long but also very stiff compared to the size of the species. "I've been studying parasitoid wasps for a long time, but I've never seen anything like it."
The sting looks like a ferocious weapon
"says Ilari E. Saaksjarvi, research professor on biodiversity at the University of Turku.
The species was discovered among insect specimens collected in the extremely diverse transition zone between the Andes and the Amazon rainforest. The recently described wasp is different from other known species because of its huge sting.
All female wasps, such as bees and hornets,
have a sting to inject venom or lay eggs.
Parasitoid wasps generally have a long ovipositor for laying useful eggs to reach live animal hosts. inside a tree, for example. With the ovipositor, the egg is placed on or inside the host and, as it also serves as a sting, the female wasp can inject poison into her victim to paralyze her says Professor Saaksjarvi.
The recently described parasitoid species belong to the rare genus
Clistopyga that specializes in egg-laying on spiders or spider-egg sacs
. Wasps are looking for spiders that live in nests and paralyze them with a quick injection of venom. Then the female wasp lays her eggs on the spider and the larvae incubator eats the paralyzed spider as well as the possible spider eggs or young ones.
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