Woman finds giant wasp nest after going on holiday - 'there are thousands'

Woman finds giant wasp nest after going on holiday - 'there are thousands' Eilish returned from holiday to discover thousands of wasps had made themselves at home A woman returned from holiday to find thousands of wasps had moved in and constructed an enormous nest. Eilish Rothney said the creatures had sneaked in through a hole in the door frame. The reserve warden with Norfolk Wildlife Trust, returned from her holidays to find the insects had completely taken over her office at Trinity Broads. By the time she arrived back, the nest was fully formed – and the unwelcome lodgers show no signs of leaving. "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." As Eilish spends the majority of the summer carrying out conservation work and wildlife surveys, the wasps were able to settle in and make themselves at home while she was away. Eilish added: "In the summer I am out most of the time doing conservation work or surveys. I am the only member of staff on the reserve so it's only cleaned when I clean it. "They started building when I was away on leave. They have been in residence for at least a month." Despite their fearsome reputation, Norfolk Wildlife Trust believes wasps deserve far greater recognition than they typically receive. Reserves officer Robert Morgan said that despite numerous encounters with wasps, he has a great admiration for their no-nonsense attitude. He said: "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. [Image text:] TS PeLsECT Hes BRGEDINT NETLAND BIRD Cepadc's Dala EONS REPURTS 214-2015