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Wasps Purpose
Name: Teneil
Status: student
Grade: 4-5
Location: DC
Country: USA
Date: Summer 2011
Question:
What is a wasps purpose in life.I made a club to find out
what animals and insects purpose in life and we got stumped on this
insect.We asked our parents and friend and other people and they
didn't now either.
Replies:
Teneil
You can find a cool comparison chart in Wikipedia at this URL:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Characteristics_of_common_wasps_and_bees
This can give you some idea of how wasps are different among themselves and
bees.
In general, your question can be answered by stating that wasps fill an
ecological niche.
That is, there is this place in the grand scheme of things that allows
organisms like wasps to thrive.
To explain this better, you could ask what do wasps eat.
The chart shows that wasps eat other insects, overripe fruit, sugary drinks,
human food / food waste, meat and other insects.
Here is another interesting article about wasps:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wasp
Mike Stewart
This is a common question, but I think is the wrong way to look at wild creatures. Wasps don't have, or need to have, a "purpose" in the human sense, they are just a part of natural ecosystems.
But within a system, each species does have a role to play. Wasps are such a large and varied group that it is impossible to answer your question for them in total. You would have to look at each species and how it fits into the food webs and other parts of its home system to say what role it plays. Some are pollinators, some are scavengers, some are predators, many are food for other creatures. It is a long, amazing list. I hope you keep asking questions and spend some time looking for answers.
J. Elliott
We tend to think of wasps as a nuisance, especially when they sting. But believe it or not, they’re very important parts of the ecosystem. The ecosystem describes how plants and animals interact with the environment. Just like people, wasps have jobs that they do especially well. One job is pollinating plants. This is one role that they share with bees.
Wasps can also keep other insects from getting out of control. They do this two ways. One is by acting as a predator, actively hunting and eating insect prey. Many of these insects are pests in the garden and on the farm, so they’re doing us a favor. Another way that wasps help manage pests is by acting as parasitoids. We usually think of wasps as large insects with painful stings. Most are actually very small. They use their stinger to lay eggs either inside or outside a pest host. These eggs hatch into larvae which eat the pest – while it’s still alive! Look up a parasitized tobacco hornworm on the internet. This is a green caterpillar that wasps like to lay eggs on. In time, the hornworm dies and the larvae develop into adults. They then complete the cycle again.
Wasps can also act as scavengers, eating animals that have recently died. In this way they help to decompose and recycle nutrients in the environment for other organisms to use. Wasps also serve as an important food source for other creatures higher on the food chain. So despite their aggressive reputation, wasps keep the ecosystem functioning. It’s important to respect them and let them do their job.
Dr. Tim Durham
Instructor, Office of Curriculum and Instruction
University Colloquium
Department of Biological Sciences
Florida Gulf Coast University
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Update: June 2012
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