Because we construct cities from the ground up and send skyscrapers farther and farther into the clouds every day, we often forget that nature is full of equally skilled builders. Oddly enough, those critters are usually of the invertebrate variety. They may be small, but these tiny contractors create some of the most incredible structures in the world.
Take these wasps, for example. We all know that bees and wasps build themselves intricate lodgings, but wait until you see what happened when Italian researcher Mattia Manchetti gave a few wasps some colored paper.
When it comes time to breed, wasps build complex nests to house their little ones. European paper wasps — the bugs used in this experiment — are no different.
While observing their working habits, Manchetti came up with a colorful idea.
After the biologist provided the diligent workers with some pretty paper, they added the material to their creation.
The end result was an elaborate nest that looks like a cross between a fun house and a bowl of kids’ cereal.
(via Nerdist)
The structure might look delicate, but as it turns out, there’s a compound in the saliva that these insects use to create their nests that makes them extremely durable. They’re even waterproof! Maybe they could help us out in the weatherproofing department.