WASPS have people in Hepburn Shire squirming, with residents saying this is the worst season they have ever experienced.
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Creswick resident Ken Winnell, a wasp nest removalist, has removed 230 nests in Creswick alone.
He estimates there are triple the amount of wasps this year due to the unusually mild weather.
Mr Winnell said the region was the ideal breeding ground for wasps due to the abundance of lakes and willow trees.
He said wasps chew the leaves of the willow tree and regurgitate them to create the papery surface of their nests.
Mr Winnell said what many people do not realise is that wasps eat meat and other insects too.
“If you walk down the main street of Daylesford, you can see wasps swarming around the front of cars eating the dead insects,” he said.
He said the intensity of this year’s season is particularly worrying as wasp nests are not only difficult to locate, but the insects are particularly aggressive and unlike bees, are able to sting a person as many times as they please.
Mr Winnell warns residents if they see a wasp, it is guaranteed there is a nest within 200 metres.
He believed more should be done by the council to remove the nests.
Porcupine Ridge resident David Castles has been living in the region for the past three years.
He lives in open woodland and has exterminated five nests on his property this year.
He located most of the nests in rabbit holes but also found one nest built in a cardboard box.
Mr Castles said the Easter weekend was “dreadful”.
“The weekend was horrendous. You couldn’t go outside.”
He noticed the infestation was particularly bad in and around Daylesford, Glenlyon and Guildford, making it almost impossible for people to enjoy the weekend weather and dine outdoors.
“I have killed thousands of wasps this year with my homemade bait stations. I mix either dog or cat food with Fipronil, which is used to kill fleas in cats and dogs. It seems to work successfully.
“I am down to about a quarter of the wasps that I had flying around at the beginning of the season,” he said.
He said he expects to see an improvement inApril, when the weather should cool down and the queen will go into hibernation.