The wasps, which survive by living off host insects and spiders until adult-sized, were discovered on a mountain in the Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest. The number of types found were similar to that previously found in the whole of the UK. The latest findings adds to a growing body of evidence that debunks the widely held belief that the Darwin wasp does not thrive in tropical environments and points to the possibility of many wasp species unknown to researchers in the past.

Researchers surveyed a group of Darwin wasps, a very diverse and important invertebrate group worldwide, on a mountain of the Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest to understand how common it was in a tropical environment and how it contributed to the biodiversity of the region. For a long time it was believed that Darwin wasps favoured more moderate climates, but recent reports of their diversity in tropical locations started to prompt questions about this assumption. They can be found in varying numbers on every continent of the world, apart from Antartica.

The study found that The wasps reproduce by parasitizing other insects and spiders until they are adult sized, and as such they are most vulnerable to human threats, which will reduce the number of insects they can choose from as host bodies. They are important to biodiversity as they kill their host insect, keeping insect populations regulated and allowing lots of different species to coexist. The Researchers hope that these latest findings will contribute towards campaigns to reduce deforestation in the rainforest region and put in place conservation programmes that include this highly diverse group of species.