The world’s largest bee has been rediscovered in Indonesia’s North Moluccas islands, 38 years after it was last seen. The terrifying creature, called Wallace’s giant bee, has an estimated wingspan of 2.5 inches and is around the same size as a human adult thumb. Wallace’s giant bee was first discovered in 1858 by British naturalist, Alfred Russel Wallace, who described it as ‘a large black wasp-like insect, with immense jaws like a stay-beetle.’However, the bee then wasn’t seen again until 1981, and since then, has remained elusive. Eli Wyman, an entomologist at Princeton University, said: “We still know next to nothing about this extraordinary insect. “By making the bee a world-famous flagship for conservation, we are confident that the species has a brighter future than if we just let it quietly be collected into oblivion.”

Source: Daily Mirror February 21, 2019 15:07 UTC