The Wasps

Top here is Scoliidae, the scoliid wasp, are a family of about 560 species found worldwide. They tend to be black, often marked with yellow or orange, and their wing tips are distinctively corrugated. Scoliid wasps act as important biocontrol agents, as many of the beetles they parasitize are pests.

The bottom critter is a European wasp, Vespula germanica (Hymenoptera: Vespidae). Although, as its name suggests, this critter is not native to Australia, it has become so widespread that it is now considered naturalised and no longer a notifiable pest in Victoria.

The native range of the European wasp is Europe, North Africa and temperate Asia, but it has since spread to North America, South America, South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia. Be careful of these. They can sting repeatedly and love crashing picnics!

This work is on 300gsm cotton pressed paper, currently set in an external frame and ready to hang. It can easily be reframed to your liking. Its fine detail makes for an interesting piece that invites you to come in for a closer look.

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Frieda-Marié de Jager is a South African artist and writer living in north Melbourne. She's enjoyed painting her whole life, since the first self-portrait on the wall at 18 months, and is specifically in love with painting weird and wonderful creatures.

Frieda has a formal education in fine art and holds a technical degree in jewellery design and manufacturing. She worked in South Africa's world-renowned diamond industry before her career veered into marketing, content writing, and graphic design.

Since the birth of her son, an avid young scientist, learning about nature's most intriguing critters has been an everyday adventure. She uses her son's curiosity as inspiration for choosing her subject matter and, in many ways, each new work becomes an adventure in science and art.