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Seirian Sumner
Seirian Sumner is an entomologist and writer. Her work, including "Endless Forms," explores the natural world. She writes about insects and their behaviors.
Endless Forms
Synopsis
In this eye-opening and entertaining work of popular science in the spirit of The Mosquito, Entangled Life, and The Book of Eels, a leading behavioural ecologist transforms our understanding of wasps, exploring these much-maligned insects' secret world, their incredible diversity and complex social lives, and revealing how they hold our fragile ecosystem in balance. Everyone worries about the collapse of bee populations. But what about wasps? Deemed the gangsters of the insect world, wasps are winged assassins with formidable stings. Conduits of Biblical punishment, provokers of fear and loathing, inspiration for horror movies: wasps are perhaps the most maligned insect on our planet. But do wasps deserve this reputation? Endless Forms opens our eyes to the highly complex and diverse world of wasps. Wasps are 100 million years older than bees; there are ten times more wasp species than there are bees. There are wasps that spend their entire lives sealed inside a fig; wasps that turn cockroaches into living zombies; wasps that live inside other wasps. There are wasps that build citadels that put our own societies to shame, marked by division of labor, rebellions and policing, monarchies, leadership contests, undertakers, police, negotiators, and social parasites. Wasps are nature's most misunderstood insect: as predators and pollinators, they keep the planet's ecological balance in check. Wasps are nature's pest controllers; a world without wasps would be just as ecologically devastating as losing the bees, or beetles, or butterflies. Wasps are diverse and beautiful by every measure, and they are invaluable to planetary health, Professor Sumner reminds us; we'd do well to appreciate them as much as their cuter cousins, the bees.
Genres
Frequently asked questions
What makes this book different from other books about insects?
Seirian Sumner's approach focuses specifically on the ecological importance of wasps, challenging common misconceptions by highlighting their roles as both predators and pollinators, which often get overshadowed by the more popular perception of bees.
Does this book connect to the author's other work?
This book builds on Seirian Sumner's extensive research as a behavioral ecologist specializing in social insects, particularly wasps. It synthesizes her academic expertise into an accessible format for a general audience.
