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Why are bees so respected when their wasp cousins do not seem to like the world?
According to researchers at University College London (UCL), this apparent hatred for wasps is likely due to a lack of public understanding of the many ecological and economic benefits that they provide.
In a study published in the journal Ecological Entomology, a team led by Seirian Sumner of UCL's Center for Research on Biodiversity and the Environment, studied public perception of bees and wasps.
"Although there is a general consensus that people hate wasps, we lack scientific evidence in this regard and why," she said. Newsweek. "So we started a social media survey to find out the truth."
The researchers interviewed 748 members of the public from 46 countries about their perception of insects, including bees and wasps. The results of the investigation were clear.
"The public hates wasps!" Said Sumner. "The words used to describe wasps are negative and emotional (eg sting, annoying, painful, dangerous), while those used to describe bees are positive and functional (eg pollination, honeybee, buzz ).
In addition, they found that people are generally unaware of the important services that wasps perform.
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"The reality is that they have a very important role to play ecologically because they are predators," said Adam Hart, an entomologist from the University of Gloucestershire, UK, who said: Did not participate in the study. Newsweek. "So, they are natural pest controllers. They take a lot of insect prey on our crops and plants. "
"But being predators, they also increase biodiversity," he said. "If an organism starts to become too common, it will attract the eyes of a predator and very quickly it will be knocked down."
Wasps are also involved in pollination, a role they tend to ignore. Although they do not pollinate as much as bees, they are more generalist and can provide good relief in degraded habitats where bees are not found, according to Sumner.
"The public does not appreciate the important services provided by the wasps, as controllers of nature," Sumner said. "Our study shows that the public highly values bees (as pollinators), but they simply do not understand that wasps are predators."
Unlike bees – which humans have lived in harmony for a very long time – our only interactions with wasps tend to be unpleasant, as anyone who has ever lost their summer picnic will know it. But our aversion to them could be culturally rooted.
"The culture of wasp hatred dates back thousands of years," Sumner said. "Aristotle – the first published entomologist – described wasps in a negative light in relation to bees. The swarms of wasps are considered a punishment by God in three books of the Bible.
This should lead to a positive feedback effect, she said: "Culturally, we are incited to hate and fear of wasps; this is likely to influence the chances of scientists choosing to study wasps as opposed to bees; less research on wasps means less general appreciation and knowledge of their role; Less knowledge means less public exposure to the media.
In fact, scientists have measured this effect. According to Sumner, the number of articles on the ecological importance of bees exceeds that of wasps by 40: 1, which means that much less is being done to communicate their positive role in the ecosystem.
The fact that the troublesome species that humans usually come in contact with – yellow wasps and hornets – represents less than 1 percent of the wasps, adds to the feeling that wasps have been hard-fought, according to scientists.
The fact that all insects, including wasps, are threatened by climate change and habitat loss highlights the need to protect the animal and preserve its benefits to the planet.
"Global concern over the decline of pollinators has led to a phenomenal level of interest and support from bees," said Alessandro Cini, co-author of the UCL study, in a statement. could be reflected for wasps, but it would require a complete cultural shift in attitudes towards wasps. "
"For scientists, the first step is to better appreciate the wasps and provide the necessary research on their economic and societal value, which will then help the public to understand the importance of wasps."
The results of the new study show that by raising people's awareness of nature, this change in perception could be realized.
"The better understanding we have of the role of wasps as predators, the less we hate them," Sumner said. "People who are very interested in nature feel that wasps are more important than those with little interest in nature."
"We need the media to help change our perception of wasps to positivity and tolerance," she said. "A world without wasps would mean we have to use a lot more chemicals to control pest populations."
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