Relocation planned

Controversial mercy for wasp nest in grave

A sign at the cemetery warns of the earth wasps that are supposed to "move".

(Bild: Dostal Harald)

The abandonment of a burial site failed because of the sting-bearing insects. Visitors to the cemetery criticize the municipality for not removing the danger immediately and wanting to spare the animals from dying in the cemetery. An insect expert advises "mitigation" as quickly as possible, no matter what.

"Watch out for earth wasps!" - A colony of sting-resistant pests has built itself a home in an old grave in St....Valentin (Lower Austria). And thus stopped the abandonment and demolition of the memorial. "The grave has looked like this for around two weeks. And nothing is being done. An old lady who looks after the grave next door is afraid to go there because she is allergic," says a St. Valentin resident who informed the city office. "I've already called the fire department, but they're not allowed to do anything without an order from the city," says the pensioner angrily.

The earth wasps at their nest at the St. Valentin cemetery

(Bild: Dostal Harald)

"Not a safe place"
Fritz Gusenleitner, an insect expert from Upper Austria, also jumps to her aid: "There is no separate species of earth wasp. It's usually the common wasp or the German wasp that build nests in holes in the ground. And that's not without danger in a cemetery." This is because wasps have an "aggressive distance" of three to four meters. So if someone ventures that close to the nest, the animals react by attacking. And this can be life-threatening, and not just for allergy sufferers. "This nest should be removed immediately," advises Fritz Gusenleitner.

"Are not protected"
The municipality is aware of the urgency, but only warning signs have been put up. "The animals are relocated, not killed," says Rudolf Steinke, head of the municipal office. Gusenleitner refutes the fact that the wasps are protected: German and common wasps can also be killed.

How to recognize "good wasps"
But he warns us not to exterminate all wasp nests: "If the honeycombs are visible and the legs of wasps in flight are hanging downwards, they are harmless species that do not bother us when we eat outside. On the contrary, they catch other pests like mosquitoes."