Strange things had been occurring in our home lately. It all began with soft noises, like someone scraping or rustling behind the walls. My spouse and I initially placed the blame on the old house or the neighbors. However, the sound grew louder every day and was especially noticeable in the early morning.
I chose to pay more attention one day and discovered that the noise was coming directly from the guest bedroom. I felt a faint vibration when I pushed my ear against the wall, as though there was life moving within.
“Let’s demolish the wall,” my spouse said. “This loudness is getting to me. In any case, we had renovations planned.
I refrained from arguing. Grabbing an axe, my husband slammed it hard against the wall. The roaring inside only intensified with each stroke. With my heart racing, I retreated in a corner of the room.
At last, we noticed a section of the wall collapse. Realizing that we had been sleeping just a few meters away from this nightmare the entire time, we froze in fear.
As they gazed at us, hundreds of tiny creatures prepared to protect their home. A massive wasp nest, brimming with live wasps, was located inside the wall.
We later discovered that wasps prefer to make their nests in warm, protected areas, which is why they frequently take up residence in attics, abandoned buildings, or even inside a home’s walls.
Their nests proliferate rapidly; a colony may have several thousand members in a single season.
Wasps are dangerous for reasons other than their excruciating stings. Anaphylactic shock and other serious allergic reactions can be brought on by their venom. Children and those with allergies are particularly at risk.
The fact that we had been practically living next door to this “neighborhood” for so long astounded us. Imagine that they might have eventually breached the wall and taken over the house if the nest had been much bigger.
