health
‘I feel motherly towards them’: the nature reserve manager sharing her office with a wasp nest
Eilish Rothney’s first instinct was to get rid of the wasps entering her converted shipping container in Norfolk. Now she enjoys their constant hum
TL;DR
- Eilish Rothney, a reserve manager, decided to share her office with a wasp nest instead of removing it.
- She adapted to the wasps' presence, finding calm and appreciating the 'poetry and beauty' of their intricate lives.
- Rothney argues against labeling insects as 'pests' and killing them out of convenience, advocating for tolerance and understanding.
- She explains that wasps can become desperate for food in late summer when their larvae stop producing sugar, leading to interference with human activities.
- Rothney encourages people to remain calm around wasps, suggesting that insects can sense non-threatening individuals.
- The wasp nest, over a meter tall, is expected to be empty by winter as the colony naturally dies off, a prospect Rothney finds sad.