New wasp species found in Taiwan

The newly described wasp Hydrophylita emporos riding on a damselfly. Photo Wikimedia Commons.


With one of the highest counts of biodiversity per square kilometre on the planet, it really isn't surprising that new species continued to be discovered on Taiwan. And once again the discovery stresses the need to protect Taiwan's incredibly rich fragile environment. So much of natural Taiwan has disappeared under layers of concrete before the complex ecosystems it hosted could be studied. Yet, government continues to kowtow to heavy industry and their destructive brand of "development." And so one of the most remarkable natural wonders on the planet will continued to be trashed for a quick buck because a few already very rich people can grow even richer raping Taiwan's natural resources while spinning the myth that it benefits us all.

The Taipei Times reports that "a team of entomologists from National Taiwan University have discovered a new species — a tiny wasp that relies on damselflies for procreation." Read the story of the discovery of Hydrophylita emporos; a wasp within a genus that has just four other species and that until this discovery was confined to South America.