Kōrero: Wasps and bees

Some wasps are parasites of eggs. This introduced wasp, a Copidosoma species, is a parasite of the eggs of Chrysodeixis moths, whose caterpillars are common horticultural pests. The wasp shown here is 1.6 millimetres long, and is laying its eggs into the egg of the host species. The moth egg will hatch into a caterpillar still carrying the wasp egg inside it. This then divides into up to 2,000 embryos.