A Biology Student Gave Wasps Access to Colored Paper and They Made Rainbow Nests

I’m not sure I can ever be a wasp lover…

That said, they can built some pretty-looking nests if you give them some colorful tools!

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Wasps are incredibly beneficial insects! They are important pollinators and even more important pest control. Many species are also incredible architects in how they construct their nests. Thanks to one researcher, it's obvious they are artists as well. . . . @mattiamenchetti #mattiamenchetti #biologyresearch #wasps #paperwasps #beneficialinsects #paperwasp #pollinators #pestcontrol #beneficial #insects #insectagram #amazinginsects #architects #artists #natureisart #artisnature #wonderfulworldaroundus #notesonnature

A post shared by Spriggly's (@sprigglys_beescaping) on Jan 3, 2020 at 12:01pm PST

University of Florence biology major Mattia Menchetti came up with the idea: he would slowly fed a captive colony of paper wasps different colors of paper over time.

The result? Nests that look more like trippy kaleidoscopes than the houses of terror that they actually are.

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They’re the #product of an #experiment conducted by #MattiaMenchetti, a #biology #student at the #UniversityofFlorence. He realised that by giving a #captive #colony of #European #paper #wasps #different #colored #paper over time, the #insects would eventually #construct their own #kaleidoscopic #houses. And as you can see, the result is #pretty remarkable, if not slightly reminiscent of a #bad #trip. While this #experiment was deliberate, unintentional #human interference with the insect world has also produced some equally surprising results. In 2012 for #example, #beekeepers in #France were amazed to discover that their #bees had created #green and #blue #honey. The reason? The unsuspecting insects were using sugar collected from the shells of M&Ms at a nearby waste-processing plant. #ARTLifeForever http://www.boredpanda.com/colorful-paper-wasp-nests-rainbow-mattia-menchetti/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=BPFacebook

A post shared by #ARTLifeForever (@livetheartlife) on Apr 9, 2016 at 4:16pm PDT

It’s not the first time scientists have realized that the insect world can get more colorful than nature intended – sometimes, with no intentional human intervention at all. In 2012, a group of French beekeepers discovered that their bees were creating green and blue honey. The culprit?

Bits of M&M shells they had found at a nearby waste processing plant.

French Bees Create Blue and Green Honey After Raiding M&M’s Factory. Here's one of those honeycombs
(https://t.co/A6LkSjDO6O) pic.twitter.com/C3cADgof1b

— 41 Strange (@41Strange) July 7, 2019

Honestly more depressing than magical, if you ask me. Which no one did, I realize.

These pictures still 100% give me the heebies, even if they’re technically pretty.

What about you? Are you a wasp fan now?

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#paperlovers Anche le vespe amano la carta! Ecco i nidi arcobaleno costruiti da una colonia di vespe a cui è stata fornita carta colorata. Un esperimento realizzato da Mattia Menchetti, studente di biologia dell'Università di Firenze… La natura sa come sorprendere! #vespe #carta #cartacolorata #nido #natura #nature #nest #wasp #naturelovers #picoftheday #colors #experiment #MattiaMenchetti @unifirenze #universitadeglistudidifirenze #italy #science #animalbehavior #green #papergreen #paperstuff

A post shared by Fabriano (@fabriano1264) on Mar 2, 2018 at 9:02am PST

If so, please explain yourself or submit for voluntary psychological hold.

It’s for your own good, I swear.

Check out Mattia’s Twitter or Facebook for more pics like these, or to see what amazing thing this young scientists comes up with next!

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