Female adult "ant wall bee"
<code>弗莱堡大学的两名研究人员在古田山做“蚁墙蜂”科学调研</code>
Every year on May 23 (since 2008), the State University of New York's School of Environment and Forestry (ESF), the nation's largest school dedicated to environmental research, publishes a list of the top ten newly discovered species, because May 23 is the birthday of Swedish zoologist Carolus Lineus. Lineus created the modern system of flora and fauna names and classifications.
In 2014, scientists discovered about 18,000 new species. On the 21st of this month, ESF introduced the singular characteristics of some of these species, including the "ant wall bee" found in the Gutianshan National Nature Reserve in Kaihua County.
The international research team composed of the University of Freiburg in Germany, the Natural Museum of Berlin and the Institute of Zoology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has also conducted investigation and investigation of the "ant wall bee" for nearly 3 years, and this year it was included in the "List of Species of Gutianshan National Nature Reserve".
According to Dr. Zhu Chaodong, a researcher at the Institute of Zoology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in the traditional biological community, spider bees often paralyze a spider to feed their babies. But this newly discovered "ant wall bee" species will also use ant carcasses to create ant walls, seal nests to protect its offspring, and the strategy and behavior are very unique, and it is the first time in the entire animal kingdom that it has been found.
The female "wall bee" in the last space it built, it will fill in the carcasses of up to 13 ants. The chemicals released by ant carcasses mask the smell of the larvae, rid them of predators, and protect the larvae from predators. Dr Zhu said it was the first time they had found animals protecting their pups with "chemical weapons." Compared with the nests of the same kind of wasps, the natural enemy parasitism rate of the nests built by this female wasp is significantly lower.
Michael Staab, a PhD from the University of Freiburg in Germany, from the research group, wrote in his investigative report: "When I first saw such a small chamber filled with ant carcasses, I was reminded of the ancient Great Wall of China. Just as the Great Wall protected the Chinese nation, the Ant Wall protected the descendants of the newly described species from predators. ”
Professor Tabor said that the natural ecosystem of Gutianshan should contain a network of interactions between spider bees, spiders, ants, wasps and parasitic wasps, so there are many other amazing phenomena to be discovered.
Yu Jianping, chief of the science and education section of the Gutianshan Administration Bureau of Kaihua County, introduced that at present, the 24-hectare forest monitoring sample land of Gutianshan has been completed and provides a good biodiversity research platform. The discovery of the new species "Antwall Bee" will further promote Sino-German cooperation and continue systematic and long-term research on the diversity of life. Image by Merle Noack