A Norfolk Wildlife Trust warden returned from holiday to discover thousands of wasps had taken over her office and built an enormous nest. Eilish Rothney found the insects had sneaked in through a hole in the door frame at Trinity Broads, where she works as a reserve warden.
By the time she arrived back, the nest was fully formed, and the unwelcome lodgers show no signs of leaving. Eilish, who is the only member of staff on the reserve, said the wasps had been in residence for at least a month while she was away doing conservation work and surveys.
Wasps Built Nest From Wood Scrapings
"The nest is in my office. They collected scraping from wood outside and meticulously built the nest and are still doing so," Eilish said. "They get in through a hole in the door frame and tolerate me opening the door, going inside and doing some work. I try not to disturb them. They do a good job controlling leaf-eating insects otherwise our trees could be bare!"
She joked: "Usually being a wildlife charity means protecting wildlife - this week it meant negotiating office space with it. Thousands of new colleagues moved in without permission, skipped recruitment entirely and ignored the office hot-desking policy. Can't fault them on attendance, though."
Wasp Stings an Occupational Hazard
Reserves officer Robert Morgan said that despite numerous encounters with wasps, he has a great admiration for their no-nonsense attitude. "Wasp stings are an occupational hazard in wildlife conservation work. It's resulted in 22 stings painfully scribbled in the accident book."
Norfolk Wildlife Trust stressed that wasps are vital to healthy ecosystems and urged anyone worried about a nest to seek professional guidance, as some species are harmless or rare and disturbing nests can prove dangerous.
