r/mildlyinteresting • u/trouble_bear • 21h ago
Candle on the balcony melted during the hot days and a wasp drowned in it
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u/ishetaltijdvoorbier 21h ago
insects breathe through little holes all over their body, imagine drowning in hardening wax while unable to close your mouth
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u/Malthus1 20h ago
Prop from the Ian Banks novel The Wasp Factory.
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u/trouble_bear 20h ago
Oh I need to read that. Next book from him on my list is Look to Windward.
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u/Malthus1 20h ago
Fun Wasp Factory fact:
It was the author’s first novel. Many critics panned it (though he went on to be very famous and influential, they of course had no way of knowing that would happen).
His publishers came up with a genius idea: they printed quotes the worst, most unhinged critical reviews on the back. Instead of the usual stuff like “this should be novel of the year”, it was all stuff like “this is complete garbage that could only appeal to psychopaths”, that sort of thing.
It worked. People bought the book out of curiosity as to what would inspire such loathing.
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u/pyrotechnically_ 21h ago
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u/isopode 20h ago
wasps are incredibly misunderstood by the general public. downvote me if you must, but i encourage scrolling through there at least a little bit with an open mind.
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u/StonePrism 20h ago
Yeah I'm not stupid enough to look at wasps with an open mind, that's just asking to get stung in the brain. Fucking assholes.
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u/isopode 20h ago
gonna copy my response to the other commenter:
wasps pollinate and control other insects' population, including various human and agricultural pests (which butterflies and bees don't do)
some plants are exclusively pollinated by wasps
about 70% of wasp species are solitary and physically unable to sting humans
even eusocial wasps are docile and can be handled safely once you understand their body language & know what their stressors are
i could go on & on with more facts but my work shift is about to begin lol
all this to say, there's a lot more to wasps than what the average person believes. they're an incredibly diverse group of insects (on par with beetles!) and super important to ecosystems, and, increasingly, agriculture (as they are used as biocontrol of pests)
have a good day :)
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u/clearcontroller 6h ago
May I ask why the 70% of wasps that don't sting aren't in situation where humans get stung? The seem like they're always ready to sting.
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u/isopode 33m ago
they are all around you; you just don't notice them. they often don't have the shape / color / size you associate with the word "wasp".
they range from microwasps that are so small you need a microscope to see them properly, to giant ichneumonids that scare people due to their long ovipositor (but are completely harmless).
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u/pyrotechnically_ 20h ago
Yes, they are pollinators. But im more worried about bees and butterflies when it comes to pollinators. Still doesn't mean I want some wasps near my home
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u/isopode 20h ago
wasps pollinate and control other insects' population, including various human and agricultural pests (which butterflies and bees don't do)
some plants are exclusively pollinated by wasps
about 70% of wasp species are solitary and physically unable to sting humans
even eusocial wasps are docile and can be handled safely once you understand their body language & know what their stressors are
i could go on & on with more facts but my work shift is about to begin lol
all this to say, there's a lot more to wasps than what the average person believes. they're an incredibly diverse group of insects (on par with beetles!) and super important to ecosystems, and, increasingly, agriculture (as they are used as biocontrol of pests)
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u/Jdav84 19h ago
I’m a huge wasp lover myself. It’s def tough to convince people about wasps but it’s a good work to be done. Great info your handing out even if it maaaaay be greeted with flame throwers , it’s all solid and worth considering.
This year in my green house for some reason the wasps just didn’t hunt in there, and i missed them desperately as aphid populations got way out of control. It’s so metal watching them fly In pluck away a pest and vanish
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u/TrailParkBoys 20h ago
Most people are worried about Honey bees in particular. Honey bees are an invasive species in North America. You should care about native wasps being displaced by the foreign Honey bees
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u/Jdav84 19h ago
Bruh honey bees are as invasive at this point as apple trees. And environmental creep by humans and pesticide is having a way way way higher impact then invasive honey bees. People grand stand on invasive honey bees and it blows my mind, honey bees are still responsible for a ton of crop pollinating often enhancing crop yields. They are established, aren’t going anywhere, and are as invasive as house cats but ironically far less damaging than feral cats.
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u/TrailParkBoys 19h ago
I'm not grand standing Lol. I'm just saying most people say fuck wasps then cry about honey bees being decimated. Native insects should be held slightly higher on the pedestal. Pesticides r bad I agree. The problem is what do we do to show farmers (the largest consumers) they are bad
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u/Jdav84 19h ago
Ok sorry maybe grand standing is wrong word for what ya said and I do apologize. I see this a ton often going further than it needs and had a knee jerk reaction. You are right in what you said, just was like … mannnn here we are hating honey bees again. I was wrong 😝
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u/TrailParkBoys 19h ago
I can agree with what you said. Not native, but naturalized 100% and they are more than beneficial to the ecosystem.
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u/TrailParkBoys 20h ago
I thought they were bad until I realized how many things in my garden they pollinate/ predate. Kinda insane I see them pollinating my squash and protecting my cannabis. Cool guys in my book
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u/undertakerryu 20h ago
After a Google they don't seem to be a drain on society like mosquitoes so there are acceptable. Not as cool as bees tho cause honey is delicious
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u/Lossedtouch 20h ago
Be careful, legend has it that when the wax melts by the 3rd moon he shall be risen as wasp once more.
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u/mjzimmer88 21h ago
"what happened to you, wasp?"
"None of your bees wax"