Prague, Oct 13 (CTK) – A new insect species, Tachysphex Bohemicus, which has been described neither in any other European country or in Turkey, was discovered by Czech entomologists at the Okna village, north Bohemia, daily Pravo writes yesterday adding that only three specimens are known.
The special wasp species, the uniqueness of which was confirmed by DNA analyses, has been publicised in foreign scientific journals, Pravo writes.
Jakub Straka, from the Faculty of Science of Charles University in Prague, told Pravo that he discovered the first specimen three years ago already and that he has only found two since.
This makes if difficult to determine the population of the species endemic to the vicinity of the Macha Lake, Pravo writes.
“Related species often occur in free sand in quarries. But we found three specimens in a meadow and on the edge of a neighbouring forest, where there was slightly ploughed up sand after pine felling,” Straka said.
The Tachysphex genus specimens hunt for grasshoppers which they stock in their nests for the future fetus. The relatives of Tachysphex Bohemicus only burrow their nests on sunny edges of forests in sand, but it is almost absent from the Okna meadow, Pravo writes.
It adds that the museum and gallery in Ceska Lipa assists in the unique wasp’s research and all believe that they will find more specimens.
ms/t/hol
