Back to the dill plants in the garden. They seem to attract a variety of insects. I was fascinated by the shape of this particular wasp and found it to be a perfect illustration of the women's fashion term "wasp waist" Here is how Wikipedia defines the expression:
"Wasp waist refers to a woman's fashion silhouette, produced by a style of corset and girdle, that has experienced various periods of popularity in the 19th and 20th centuries. Its primary feature is the abrupt transition from a natural-width rib cage to an exceedingly small waist, with the hips curving out below. It takes its name from its similarity to a wasp's segmented body. The sharply cinched waistline also exaggerates the hips and bust.
In the 19th century, while average corseted waist measurements varied between 20 and 23 inches, wasp waist measurements of 18 to 16 inches were common and were often striven for as the reigning standard of feminine beauty in the period."
It is hard to imagine how nourishment gets from the mouth to the posterior in this creature. And just think, she does it with no corsets or girdles.
I don't remember what the statistics were but there were a lot of women who basically suffocated from corsets because they couldn't breathe. It also brings to mind the scene from Meet Me In St. Louis where Judy Garland's character is wearing one for the first time and has to learn how to move in it! Nice shot!
@olivetreeann Can you think of any standards of beauty we uphold today that might be as harmful? I'm thinking spike heels and tattoos but neither is as pervasive as corsets were, I think..
I remember the scene in Gone with the wind where Scarlet is having her slave I guess it was tie her tighter into her corset. That would have made live so miserable. They were always "getting the vapors" and fainting....some think it was those corsets. That is a tiny waist n that wasp!
Interesting information, Allison and a beautiful photo. I just cannot imagine anyone with a 20-23 inch waist ;-) I never heard that expression before.....cool!
Viewed on large makes the wasp really pop out of the screen. Well done to get such a close up. After being stung once on an elephant safari, I'm a little weary!!!
