Parasitoid Wasps

Look out for parasitoid wasps who lay their eggs inside other insects, which sooner or later causes the death of these hosts. When the eggs hatch, the larvae have a readily available source of food. They play a vital role in in the food web. In Ireland, there are over 120 ‘stinging’ wasps, which are closely related to both bees and ants. This includes our familiar black and yellow social wasps, as well as other solitary species, such as predatory digger wasps, which hunt other insects, including aphids, froghoppers, thrips and various flies. They nest in empty plant stems, dead wood, bare sand and clay banks. Wasps are part of our native Irish biodiversity.