Wildlife photographers Nick Volpe and Lucnya Kania discover new ghost wasp species in Top End

A two year wait after a wild wasp chase in the Northern Territory has ended for a pair of wildlife photographers, who have received confirmation they have discovered a new species. Find out more.

Nick Volpe and Lucinya Kania with the new wasp species they discovered in 2024. Picture: Supplied

A wild wasp chase in the Territory’s Top End has led to the discovery of a lifetime for a pair of Victorian wildlife photographers: a new insect species.

Back in 2022, at Leliyn (Edith Falls), Nitmiluk National Park, Nick Volpe and Lucnya Kania discovered a new ghost wasp species.

However, it wasn’t until today, September 9, the discovery was formally recognised in a paper by Dr. Ben Parslow, and named Gasteruption mamburrumurl.

Dr. Parslow, the Collection Manager of Terrestrial Invertebrates at the South

Australian Museum and Australia’s leading expert on Gasteruption Wasps, has a longstanding connection to the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, having volunteered in the Natural Science department during his teenage years.

This new species of wasp will be more commonly known as “Mam-Burrumurl wasp” – a Jawoyn language name.

The name combines the Jawoyn language words for ghost and wasp, “mam” and “burrumurl”, and was made in collaboration with Jawoyn Association chairwoman Lisa Mubin – who gave permission for language to be used.

The new wasp species Gasteruption mamburrumurl, also known as the "Mam-Burrumurl wasp", discovered by Nick Volpe and Lucinya Kania in 2024. Picture: Supplied

Ms Kania and Mr Volpe said they stumbled upon the new species on their friend’s back door after they noticed lots of bees and wasps around the property.

“Whilst chasing some of the parasitic wasps coming to the bee nests, we noticed a striking wasp with red and black colouration that we hadn’t seen before – quite literally, on ranger Rod Hare’s back flyscreen door,” they said.

“We took a photo and sent it to Dr Ben Parslow from the SA Museum who is the leading taxonomist in this family of wasps in Australia, who within a few days, could excitingly confirm this wasp to be something new.”

Ms Kania and Mr Volpe, originally from Victoria, now call the Top End home, and said discovering a new species was a “real testament to how much is still out there to learn about our invertebrate world”.

“As wildlife photographers, we are interested in biodiversity, especially of the often unnoticed invertebrate world,” they said.

The paper will be published in the Australian Journal of Taxonomy and will be freely accessible to all.