{"product_id":"endless-forms-the-secret-world-of-wasps-isbn-9780063029927","title":"Endless Forms: The Secret World of Wasps","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e“A book that draws us in to the strange beauty of what we so often run away from.” \u003c\/b\u003e—\u003cb\u003e Robin Ince, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Importance of Being Interested\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIn this eye-opening and entertaining work of popular science in the spirit of \u003ci\u003eThe Mosquito, Entangled Life,\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Book of Eels, \u003c\/i\u003ea leading behavioural ecologist transforms our understanding of wasps, exploring these much-maligned insects’ secret world, their incredible diversity and complex social lives, and revealing how they hold our fragile ecosystem in balance.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eEveryone worries about the collapse of bee populations. But what about wasps? Deemed the gangsters of the insect world, wasps are winged assassins with formidable stings. Conduits of Biblical punishment, provokers of fear and loathing, inspiration for horror movies: wasps are perhaps the most maligned insect on our planet. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBut do wasps deserve this reputation?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eEndless Forms\u003c\/i\u003e opens our eyes to the highly complex and diverse world of wasps. Wasps are 100 million years older than bees; there are ten times more wasp species than there are bees. There are wasps that spend their entire lives sealed inside a fig; wasps that turn cockroaches into living zombies; wasps that live inside other wasps. There are wasps that build citadels that put our own societies to shame, marked by division of labor, rebellions and policing, monarchies, leadership contests, undertakers, police, negotiators, and social parasites. Wasps are nature’s most misunderstood insect: as predators and pollinators, they keep the planet’s ecological balance in check. Wasps are nature’s pest controllers; a world without wasps would be just as ecologically devastating as losing the bees, or beetles, or butterflies.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWasps are diverse and beautiful by every measure, and they are invaluable to planetary health, Professor Sumner reminds us; we’d do well to appreciate them as much as their cuter cousins, the bees. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis paradigm-shifting book reveals the truth about nature’s most misunderstood insect:\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eEvolutionary History:\u003c\/b\u003e Discover why bees are simply wasps that have forgotten how to hunt, and how wasps are the ancestors of all ants.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eEcosystem Services:\u003c\/b\u003e Learn how wasps act as nature’s unheralded pest controllers, keeping our ecosystem in balance and protecting crops without chemicals.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eSecret Pollinators:\u003c\/b\u003e Uncover the hidden world of wasp pollination, from the minuscule fig wasps that make figs possible to orchids that trick wasps into mating with them.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eWasp Societies:\u003c\/b\u003e Explore wasp citadels with their monarchies, rebellions, and social parasites—societies so complex they rival our own.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eFrom Venom to Zombies:\u003c\/b\u003e Delve into the science of wasp venom, its potential for human medicine, and how some species turn cockroaches into living slaves.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e | \u003cp\u003e“[Sumner’s] passion for wasps and their global importance as both predators and pollinators is compelling…This interesting and entertaining work is sure to leave readers buzzing.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A book that draws us in to the strange beauty of what we so often run away from.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eRobin Ince, author of The Importance of Being Interested\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“If you’ve ever wondered, ‘Why do wasps exist?’ you must read this book. There is so much more to them than you ever imagined. A funny and beautifully written welcome to the enigmatic, weird, and wonderful world of wasps. Wasps are seriously cool.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eDave Goulson, author of Silent Earth\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“I thought I knew about wasps—I was wrong. Wasps are perfectly adapted to life on earth—I want to come back as one. A cracking good read that left me buzzing with excitement.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eDr. George McGavin, zoologist, broadcaster, and author of All Creatures Small and Great: How Insects Make the World\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Wasps, in all their endless forms, are not the annoying monsters we often believe them to be. Instead they are fascinating foundations of entire ecosystems, and essential to our lives. Sumner’s tale is thrilling, warm, and scholarly in equal measure, and brilliantly repairs the reputation of wasps—most beautiful and wonderful as they truly are.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eAdam Rutherford, author of A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Presenting her work as a counterweight to the “bee-bias” of much scientific literature, [Sumner] expounds on wasps’ social organization and reproductive habits, and lays out a case for further research into this ‘challenging child of the insect world.’” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe New Yorker\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A witty, readable and unusual account of the world’s most maligned and misunderstood insect: the wasp.”  - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eForbes\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Sometimes the most perfect books are those that shine a light on surprising, neglected subjects. \u003cem\u003eEndless Forms\u003c\/em\u003e is just such a book. Seirian Sumner writes lucidly and entertainingly about this most fascinating of creatures. You’ll never ask ‘What’s the point of wasps?’ again.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWill Storr, author of The Status Game\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Sumner successfully makes the case for wasps in this engaging read with her deft humor, thorough research, and astute analogies.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal (starred review)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e“Endless Forms\u003c\/em\u003e is a labor of love, designed to alter fundamentally the narrative surrounding wasps, presenting budding naturalists and amateur entomologists with a transformative lens through which to appreciate the \"gangsters of the insect world.”  - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eShelf Awareness\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"A wasp admirer makes a delightful case for their importance.” \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews (starred review)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Entomologist Sumner debuts with a tour de force on the world of wasps, delving into their daily lives, economic value to society, and the important ecological niches they fill.”  - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Sumner’s compelling account of nature’s coherent beauty teaches that it is time for the utilitarian attitude toward nature to be replaced with appreciation and conservation, something long overdue.”  - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Harper","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44889757384933,"sku":"NP9780063029927","price":28.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780063029927.jpg?v=1730231837","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/endless-forms-the-secret-world-of-wasps-isbn-9780063029927","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}