Oobius depressus! It may sound depressing but it is not so!
Before that you must know about the wood-boring beetle!
Before that you must know about The Black Locust!
So the Black Locust is not a locust but a tree! Known as Robinia pseudoacacia ; it is a fast-growing deciduous tree known for its paradoxically hard, rot-resistant wood and fragrant white flower clusters.
The trees, whose wood is strong, hard and extremely durable, helped build the Jamestown settlement and were featured prominently at George Washington’s Mount Vernon estate.
But these trees were not planted or were not planted much because of the wood boring beetle!
The wood-boring beetle, also known as the locust borer, is considered a serious pest that has discouraged planting of black locusts.
Once you get the beetle infestion unchecked since it has only one natural enemy; the beetle had a free run to ruin!
So for the past one hundred years or so there was no protection! Then again as mentioned in many scriptures about the rise of any evil! There will come a protector! Or in this case; the protector will come again!
That brings us to Oobius depressus!
Oobius depressus is a rare, non-stinging, parasitic wasp of the Encyrtidae family, rediscovered in 2015 after being missing for 101 years!
It is a natural enemy of the locust borer (Megacyllene robiniae), a beetle that kills black locust trees, and is a potential biological control agent!
Last found in 1914 (in Illinois, without heads/antennae), it was rediscovered in 2015 in Michigan by USDA Forest Service entomologists and UC Riverside researchers.
It is a specialist parasitoid that lays its eggs inside the eggs of the locust borer, preventing the destructive larvae from hatching!
Since the locust borer damages black locust trees—a valuable, hardy wood species this discovery makes the wasp a significant ally for forestry and environmental protection!
Another significant ally for you can be a rich man like Mukesh Ambani!
Now dream to be as rich as him and sleep!
Subh ratri…
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