h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I'm a biologist who looks at the genetics of these little wasps which attack greenfly who are trying to eat all our crops. These wasps are really useful, so they shouldn't all get the bad press of the little yellow and black buggers.

A useful wasp, who'd have thought. Is it actually related to our common or garden wasp, or is it a similar looking bug which was badly misnamed before our age of reason.

No, it's a wasp. From the Hymenoptera, same family as bees, wasps and ants. Theyre tiiiiiny, can be about 2mm long. They're called parasitoid wasps. They're mean little buggers, they paralyse their hosts, lay an egg inside them. Then the larva hatches and eats the host alive. Y'know 'Alien', the film, that had a life cycle of a parasitoid.

Fortunately i mash them up and extract all their DNA. Karma that's called.

The wasps, not the aliens.

The wasps, not the aliens.

I've heard of those things, really nasty I knew they wouldn't be completely nice. Wasps, of course not Aliens.

How not to get stung by wasps: act naturally. They will not sting you. Show fear by flapping around like a loony and yes, you'll p**s the wasp off too.

Wasps are beautiful wee creatures. Their shape has inspired the Italian moped design 'Vespa' (which is of course 'wasp' in Italian).

Jack!

I totally agree. Wasps are stunningly little things. I am always stunned at how mechanical they look.

Ste

Hi Ste

I'm going through the Edited Entries, starting backwards from Z! Blimey - there are a lot of W's...

Jack

Really?

Blimey, that's a bit extreme innit? What, are you bored or summat?



Ste

Oh, I'm only reading the ones that look interesting. Hmmm... werewolves...

I was going to say! "Over 4,000 entries!?!?!" that is...

Phew

I was hoping for something about Posh east coast, old money families in the USA!