My son passed his freshly squeezed lemonade to me the other day to let me take a sip, but a brightly striped yellow jacket wasp (Vespula) beat me to it. He crawled up the straw, following the scent of sweetness to the top. I tried gently blowing air on him to encourage his departure. It wasn’t working. A friend of mine flicked it to the ground and said something to the effect of “So what? Wasps are jerks. It’s not like they are pollinators.”

I don’t write this to shame. I too have found my strength against a smaller opponent who seemed worthless to me in the moment (roaches and shoes come to mine). It’s the notion that we are not to be inconvenienced by critters. Not by a beautiful doe and her fawn who are snacking on the lilies in the front yard. Not by the vole tunnels criss-crossing the lawn. Especially not by coyotes who call at dusk, making it feel unsafe to take the dog outside after dinner. Not by a wasp at the farmer’s market. At some point in all of our lives, each of us has ranked our existence, comfort and convenience above theirs.

The othering of nature.

So what? Wasps are jerks. I have been stung by a wasp, deer eat my flowers, voles have torn up my lawn and I don’t know, maybe a coyote will threaten my dog one day. Pretty inconvenient! But we are presently bearing witness to a mass extinction event, a loss of biodiversity grander than any time before. And that matters because:

• Biodiverse habitats protect humans from storms and floods.

• Biodiverse habitats clean water, filter air and rejuvenate soil.

• Biodiverse habitats store carbon, keeping it out of the atmosphere.

• Biodiverse habitats can cope with change.

Humans depend on biodiversity.

Humans depend on the unlovables. The jerky wasps of the world.

I challenge you to pause the next time you are inconvenienced by a troublesome critter, big or small. Before you act, ask yourself: is this really a threat, or a perception of a threat? Should I flick it or wait for it to fly away?

Wasps: A Love Story

There are people in this world who love wasps. Take Seirian Sumner as an example. She has spent her life researching these insects and wrote the book. “Endless Forms: The Secret World of Wasps.”

But really, what’s to love? Yes, they are territorial, (in other worlds, they will sting you) especially as you get close to a nest, knowingly or unknowingly. I too can get all mama-bear when my kids are threatened so I can relate. But we can’t let our worse moments define us. Me or the wasp.

Wasps are actually pollinators, which explains why my sugary lemonade was appealing to the wasp in the first place. They too enjoy sweet nectar. They also regulate populations of caterpillars that eat up our crops and gardens. While scientists haven’t precisely calculated the economic value wasps provide as pest control agents, Sumner’s research suggests they may be an economically and environmentally viable alternative to chemical pest control strategies, protecting both our food supply and our bodies from pesticide exposure. While they fill the niche of predator on a food web, they are also prey animals. Unattended nests leave larvae, (a nutritious food source) exposed to hungry warm and fuzzy critters we do love: bears, raccoons, skunks and opossums.

Ah, wasps. Maybe you’re not so bad after all!