People Hate Wasps But These Insects Are Just As Important As Bees
Unlike bees, wasps are considered as nuisance and dangerous insects, but researchers said that these creatures are also important in pollination and in warding off pests.
In a new study published in the journal Ecological Entomology, Seirian Sumner from University College London, and colleagues conducted a social media media survey to investigate public perception of bees and wasps.
Bees are highly regarded because of the crucial role they play in pollinating plants, but this does not seem to be the case with their wasp cousins.
The researchers wanted to find out if there is truth to the general consensus that people hate wasps. Their survey, which involved 748 individuals from 46 countries, revealed that people indeed hate wasps.
While participants of the survey commonly associated the words “honey”, “pollination”, and “flowers” to bees, the researchers found that the words commonly associated with wasps were “annoying”, “sting”, and “dangerous”.
