CatersSome seriously creepy-crawly footage has emerged, showing a colossal wasp nest which had taken root in an abandoned car.
The nest, which contained over one million yellow jacket wasps, was discovered in a Chevrolet Malibu at the back of a South Louisiana property.
This vid shows Stinger Exterminations’ wasp and bee expert, Jude Verret, as he bravely investigates the vehicle. Seriously, please do leave this sort of poking around to the experts…
Speaking to the camera as he observes the Chevrolet, Verret said:
I got a call on this Malibu, they said they had honeybees. But this is actually Southern Yellow Jackets, which is a paper wasp.
Vespula squamosa is the scientific name. And these nests can get huge. This is a perennial, active yellow jacket nest.
Focusing the camera lens inside the discarded vehicle, it becomes apparent just how deeply embedded the nest had become; completely swallowing the driver’s seat and bulging through the vents.
The video then gets even more skin-crawling when Verret begins to disturb the wasps, sending them buzzing this way and that in a way which made me itch thousands of miles away in England. The wasps swarmed thick and fast; a hellish, ferocious cloud of black and yellow.
The weirdly placed mannequin head – perhaps an idol for the wasp citizens to worship? – only added to the eerie sight.
Voice barely audible above the fierce buzzing, Verret opened the back door of the car to reveal how the wasp nest had completely packed out the foot wells. He remarked how the ‘mega nest’ had grown ‘two or three times’ since the last time he had visited it.
CatersVerret then turned his attention to numerous spots of venom; visible all over the surface of the car:
That’s venom. That’s all venom. And you can smell it, it’s everywhere in the air. I disturbed the nest but I didn’t disturb them all, there’s still a bunch of them in the nest.
The video, which has since gone viral, has sparked a collective online shudder amongst those who’ve struggled through it.
One person commented:
That nest is humongous absolutely mega frkn yellow jackets from hell good luck on that one.
Another gulped:
I think the scariest part about this video was when that mannequin head spawned.. WHY IS IT STARING AT ME.
CatersAs reported by LiveScience, yellow jackets usually build their papery nests inside cavities, including abandoned burrows in the ground or inside walls.
If disturbed by humans, they will defend their homes violently and – unlike honeybees – they are able to sting any invaders multiple times without dying.
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Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.