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Saudi 1st First Women Wildlife Ranger Unit Celebrates 5,000th Patrol

Photo by SPA
Photo by SPA
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Saudi 1st First Women Wildlife Ranger Unit Celebrates 5,000th Patrol

Photo by SPA
Photo by SPA

Prince Mohammed bin Salman Royal Reserve Development Authority announced in a press release on Thursday the 5,000th patrol by Saudi Arabia's first women wildlife ranger unit.
Reserve development authority CEO Andrew Zaloumis stated that the women rangers' team is exploring new horizons one patrol at a time.

According to SPA, he emphasized that women's conservation teams are crucial, and noted that the reserve has focused on empowering women—who comprise 33% of the 183-strong team, well above the global average of less than 11%.
Zaloumis attributed the success to a female-led team within the reserve, from executive management to the socio-economic development unit, which collaborates with local women to build their capacity as conservation leaders.
Since their historic induction in 2022, these women have played a vital role in conserving the reserve's natural and cultural heritage while paving the way for women in Saudi Arabia to pursue careers in conservation.

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Scientists Uncover Ancient Insect Preserved in Amber that Snatched its Prey

This illustration provided by Xiaoran Zuo in March 2025 depicts an ancient parasitic wasp found in Myanmar that may have seized prey with its Venus flytrap-like back end. (Xiaoran Zuo via AP)
This illustration provided by Xiaoran Zuo in March 2025 depicts an ancient parasitic wasp found in Myanmar that may have seized prey with its Venus flytrap-like back end. (Xiaoran Zuo via AP)
TT
20
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Scientists Uncover Ancient Insect Preserved in Amber that Snatched its Prey

This illustration provided by Xiaoran Zuo in March 2025 depicts an ancient parasitic wasp found in Myanmar that may have seized prey with its Venus flytrap-like back end. (Xiaoran Zuo via AP)
This illustration provided by Xiaoran Zuo in March 2025 depicts an ancient parasitic wasp found in Myanmar that may have seized prey with its Venus flytrap-like back end. (Xiaoran Zuo via AP)

An ancient wasp may have zipped among the dinosaurs, with a body like a Venus flytrap to seize and snatch its prey, scientists reported Wednesday.
The parasitic wasp's abdomen boasts a set of flappy paddles lined with thin bristles, resembling “a small bear trap attached to the end of it,” said study co-author Lars Vilhelmsen from the Natural History Museum of Denmark.
Scientists uncovered over a dozen female wasps preserved in 99-million-year-old amber from the Kachin region in northern Myanmar, The Associated Press reported. The wasp’s flaps and teeth-like hairs resemble the structure of the carnivorous Venus flytrap plant, which snaps shut to digest unsuspecting insects. But the design of the wasp's getup made scientists think its trap was designed to cushion, not crush.
Instead, researchers suggested the flytrap-like structure was used to hold a wriggly insect still while the wasp laid an egg, depositing a baby wasp to feed on and drain its new host.
It's a playbook adapted by many parasitic wasps, including modern-day cuckoo and bethylid wasps, to exploit insects. But no known wasp or any other insect does so with bizarre flaps quite like this one.
“I've seen a lot of strange insects, but this has to be one of the most peculiar-looking ones I've seen in a while,” said entomologist Lynn Kimsey from the University of California, Davis, who was not involved with the research.
Scientists named the new wasp Sirenobethylus charybdis, partly for the sea monster from Greek mythology that stirred up wild whirlpools by swallowing and expelling water.
The new study was published in the journal BMC Biology and included researchers from Capital Normal University and the Beijing Xiachong Amber Museum in China.
It's unclear when the wasp went extinct. Studying unusual insects like this one can help scientists understand what insects are capable of and how different they can be.
“We tend to think that the cool things are only found today," said Gabriel Melo, a wasp expert at the Federal University of Paraná in Brazil, who had no role in the study. "But when we have this opportunity, we see that many really exceptional, odd things already happened.”