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Europe’s largest wasp spotted in Gomel Oblast

GOMEL, 6 August (BelTA) – Europe’s largest wasp, the mammoth wasp, has been spotted in the agrotown of Lyaskovichi in Gomel Oblast, BelTA learned from Pripyatsky National Park.

The rare find for Gomel Oblast was spotted by park staff working jointly with representatives of the Scientific and Practical Center for Bioresources.

Entomologists saw the mammoth wasp, the largest wasp in both Europe and Belarus, in the vicinity of Lyaskovichi. A female mammoth wasp was observed feeding on flowering field thistle. “This rare insect was first included in the national Red Book of Belarus in 2015, and the very first record of the species in the country dates back to 2007, when it was documented in the Polesie State Radiation and Ecological Reserve,” the national park explained.

A year earlier, as well as in 2024, females and males of this species were also spotted on clumps of flowering thyme in the village of Doroshevichi.

According to experts, the mammoth wasp population is currently under serious threat due to a combination of environmental factors and human activity. This species is non-venomous. “In the wild, the number of large beetles, whose larvae serve as food for the wasp’s offspring, is declining sharply, which is directly linked to the loss of old-growth forests, the clearing of windthrows, the felling of dying trees, and the uprooting of stumps. As a result, the insects are forced to move closer to humans and use temporary breeding sites in residential areas, such as compost pits or piles of wood waste. Additional damage to this already vulnerable species is caused by the regular burning of dry grass, the incineration of logging debris, and the widespread use of chemical pesticides,” Pripyatsky National Park explained.

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