What is "nasonia"

Nasonia are a genus of small pteromalid parasitoid wasps that sting and lay eggs in the pupae of various flies. The fly species that Nasonia usually parasitize are primarily blow flies and flesh flies, making Nasonia a useful tool for biocontrol of these pest flies. The small match-head sized wasps are also referred to as jewel wasps based on the emerald sheen of their exoskeleton (visible in the image to the right).

The wasp genus has acquired genes from the Pox virus and from Wolbachia in less than 100,000 years. Nasonia and other parasitic Hymenopterans appear to have evolved at a faster rate than most other insect orders, and it has been noted by a number of authors that this could be due to Wolbachia, different strains of which arguably infect or are endosymbionts of the differing species of Nasonia.

There are currently four described species in the Nasonia genus, N. vitripennis, N. longicornis, N. giraulti, and N. oneida. N. vitripennis is found worldwide; N. giraulti is found in eastern North America and N. longicornis is found in western North America. N. oneida was the most recently discovered, having been distinguished from N. giraulti as a separate species in 2010.