Rare Parasitic Wasps from Europe Found in the US for the First Time

Scientists have just identified two previously unknown species of parasitic wasps living in the United States.

The discovery is described in a study in the Journal of Hymenoptera Research led by biologist professor Kristen Prior of Binghamton University.

Her research is part of a larger initiative that explores the diversity of oak gall wasps and their defense against their parasitic predators.

Prior explains in the study that while they are only about 1–8 millimeters long, oak gall wasp are known for creating the tumor-like plant growths known as "galls."

These growths can be small as a pinhead or large as an apple, and take on different shapes, with some resembling sea urchins, others saucers, and so on.

North America has around 90 different species of oak trees, and around 800 sp