TERRITORY and Municipal Services wasp specialist, CoreEnviro Solutions, is encouraging ACT residents to keep an eye out for European wasp nests as wasp season is fast coming to its peak.

“It has been a steady European wasp season so far, with 345 contacts to the hotline of which 95 were confirmed as European wasp nests,” CoreEnviro Solutions Senior Pest and Weed Officer, Jim Bariesheff, said.

“European wasps are a nuisance and have been reported around public barbecues, picnic areas, outdoor dining areas, coffee shops and gardens, and we expect the number of reports to increase in the next month as the wasps start producing drones and queens. This will cause the nests to rapidly grow in size.

“At this time of year European wasps become extremely aggressive in protecting their next generation. Another common location for nests is inside wall cavities. Signs of wasps in your wall cavity are a steady stream of bright yellow and black wasps flying in and out from crevices around door frames or window seals.

“It is important to report nests and have them treated as soon as you know you have a nest in your wall cavity or roof space to avoid damage to your home. There have been a number of reports of Canberrans coming home or waking up to wasps flying around in their homes from a hole in the wall that the eWasps made.

“European wasps gnaw through the gyprock to expand the size of the nest. This type of damage can cause hundreds of dollars in repairs, so we are reminding residents do an inspection of their property should wasps be present in and around their homes. We are advising residents to have a professional treat the nest and not to try it themselves.”

“We have already received reports of a number of Canberrans being stung while trying to treat the nest themselves. They have learnt the hard way why professional pest controllers should be engaged to treat European wasp nests.

“The new eWasp mobile app has proven effective and very useful since its launch in February, with a number of eWasp nests reported and destroyed. The map on the app displays reported and untreated nests on public land and provides a useful tool for accurately locating nests. We encourage the public to make use of the app to help us identify and destroy nests.”

Report all European wasp nests to the hotline on 6258 5551 or via the eWasp Mobile App or the website ewasp.com.au