An extreme scientific mission took microscopic, chilled wasps to a remote South Atlantic island where they reproduced, controlled a devastating infestation, saved native trees, prevented the disappearance of a unique bird, and reversed an imminent ecological collapse.
In one of the most unlikely conservation operations ever undertaken, Parasitic wasps were transported frozen on planes and ships to a remote island., with the aim of containing a silent infestation that was advancing rapidly and threatening to destroy the only forest in the entire territory.
The operation involved extreme risks, complex logistics, and a tight deadline. Without intervention, rare trees They would disappear, a bird unique in the world. It would become extinct and the island’s ecosystem would collapse irreversibly..
A small island where everything depends on a single ecosystem.
Nightingale Island is part of the Tristan da Cunha archipelago in the South Atlantic, one of the most isolated island groups on the planet.
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The territory is remote, difficult to access, and home to a closed ecosystem, in which virtually all species depend on a single native forest.
This forest is not extensive, it does not have alternative fragments and It represents the ecological heart of the island.Without it, there is no shelter, food, or reproduction for much of the local wildlife.
Unlike continents, there is no possibility of migration or natural replacement there.
The tree that sustains the entire food chain.
Phylica arborea is the main tree on the island and the only native species capable of forming a forest.
It produces fruits that are essential for various species and It is the cornerstone of the Wilkins scrivener’s survival., an endemic bird that doesn’t exist anywhere else on the planet.
Any threat to Phylica arborea translates directly into a threat to the bird.
When the tree gets sick, the bird loses its food. When the tree dies, the bird loses its future.
The accidental arrival of the invisible enemy.
Invasive insects from the Coccoidea family arrived on the island unintentionally, transported along with people, equipment, and cargo.
Because they were extremely small, they went unnoticed in the initial checks.
With no natural predators, these insects have found an ideal environment.
The population exploded in a short time., spreading rapidly from tree to tree, colonizing branches, trunks and leaves.
How insects are killing the forest from within.
These insects suck the sap from trees, directly weakening them. In addition, they secrete a sugary substance called honeydew, which accumulates on leaves and branches.
A dark fungus grows on top of this honeydew that blocks sunlightThis prevents photosynthesis. The tree then produces less energy, loses vigor, stops bearing fruit, and eventually dies.
Visually, the forest appeared covered in soot. Biologically, It was a collapse in progress..
The infestation is reaching critical levels.
Surveys showed that, in just a few years, the percentage of infested trees jumped from less than a third to almost the entirety in some areas. The forest, already limited in size, began to lose its capacity for regeneration.
With no young trees surviving and adult trees becoming diseased, The system entered a downward spiral..
When the weather makes everything worse
In 2019, extremely violent storms hit the island in succession. Intense winds toppled trees already weakened by insects. Branches broke, canopies crumbled, and extensive forest areas collapsed.
About 80% of the forest suffered direct damage.What the insects hadn’t completely destroyed, the climate finished tearing down.
The direct impact on the island’s rarest bird.
Wilkins’ bunting has always had a small population, limited by space and food supply. Even so, it maintained a stable balance.
After the loss of the forest, The food disappeared almost all at once.Adults had difficulty feeding themselves. Offspring did not survive. Pairs stopped reproducing.
In just a few years, the number of breeding pairs fell by more than 80%. The species came to be considered critically endangered.
The urgency of an unprecedented decision.
Given this scenario, time was the biggest enemy. There was no room for lengthy tests or generic solutions.
Pesticides were ruled out due to the risk of eliminating native insects and further compromising the ecosystem. The remaining alternative was highly specific biological control.
Why choose parasitic wasps?
As wasps The chosen ones exhibit extremely specialized behavior.
They locate only the invading insects and lay their eggs inside them. The host dies and new wasps emerge, repeating the cycle.
Those wasps They do not attack plants, they do not attack other insects, they do not bite humans, and they do not form aggressive colonies. If the target insect disappears, they disappear too..
A logistical mission pushed to the limit of what’s possible.
Transport wasps Bringing the island to life required a radical strategy.
To reduce their metabolism and increase their chances of survival, they were kept under controlled refrigeration throughout the journey.
The journey involved an international flight, quarantine, several days of sea transport, and severe weather conditions. The trip took almost a month.
A high price paid along the way.
Less than 10% of wasps They survived the transport.
The number was so low that This would not allow for an immediate impact on the infestation..
At this point, the mission entered its most delicate phase: transforming survivors into the founders of a new population.
Creating wasps where there have never been wasps.
As wasps The survivors were kept in controlled environments with host plants and invasive insects available.
The initial goal was not to combat the plague, but to ensure that they reproduced.
Only after verifying that the cycle was working correctly did the gradual release into the forest begin.
The silent expansion within the forest.
Once established, the wasps They began to spread naturally.
In just over a year, its population grew from tens to thousands.
Signs of control began to appear. The number of invasive insects decreased.
The dark fungus receded. Green leaves began to sprout again.
The forest reacts faster than expected.
Despite the destruction, the forest showed a surprising capacity for resilience.
Trees that seemed doomed have started producing leaves and fruit again.
The recovery was neither immediate nor uniform, but interrupted the total collapse.
The direct effect on birds
With the gradual return of the fruit, Wilkins’ bunting has once again found enough food to survive. More recent surveys indicate population stabilization, something unthinkable just a few years before.
It’s still a small but vibrant population. And that, in that context, already represents a huge victory.
Reforestation as a second battlefront
In addition to biological control, nurseries were created for the production of Phylica arborea seedlings.
These trees grow slowly and take years to produce fruit.
The planting was done strategically, in more protected areas, to ensure that The future of the forest does not depend solely on natural regeneration..
Protection to prevent the error from happening again.
Strict biosecurity rules began to be applied.
Cargo is inspected, materials are controlled, and any risk of introducing new invasive species is now treated as a serious threat.
The island learned the hard way that A single mistake can put the entire system at risk..
What does this story teach us?
This operation shows how Microscopic organisms can decide the fate of entire species..
As wasps They not only saved trees, but they bought time for an entire ecosystem to breathe again.
It also shows that, on isolated islands, There is no room for carelessness….and that delayed actions are far too costly.
The forest will still need years to fully recover.
The bird is still at risk. But the collapse has been halted.
Today Nightingale Island is no longer heading towards silent extinction.. Thanks to tiny, almost invisible wasps, the worst was avoided..
If an entire forest and a unique species could be saved by microscopic insects, how far do you think science can go when time is running out?