Pest Controller Finds 3ft Wasps' Nest That Was Home To 75,000 Insects

Ralph Clews, 48, was so surprised by the huge nest that he even posed for a selfie with it, after discovering it on 8 October at a home in Coventry.

Ralph has been worked in pest control since 1997 and says he's never seen a nest as big as this before.

Ralph said: "This is without a doubt the largest wasps' nest that I have ever seen before on the job.

"When I was actually looking at it for the first time, I thought there was no way it could have been wasps that produced this nest and assumed it must have been hornets.

"On closer inspection the colony was around 75,000 to 100,000 wasps and measured 70 and a half inches round and over 36 inches tall."

The customer called Ralph's company RC Pest Management to handle the infestation.

Ralph added: "The idea was to take it to the school to show the class for educational purposes, but it was certainly a bit too big to do that.

"It was the largest in a series of three nests that were found in the attic which were all sorted using a dust treatment which the wasps carry into the nests."

Ralph explained that the typical size of a large nest is usually only slightly bigger than a football.

He said: "In comparison to what was found in this attic, it was almost inconceivable to think it was produced by the same species."

Not content with spending his days around wasps and hornets, in his spare time Ralph is a beekeeper and has even developed allergies from being stung so frequently.

But despite the dangerous profession, Ralph is happy with what he does and loves helping out families in need.

He added: "I enjoy what I do though, it is really rewarding, and I feel like I really make a difference.

"Infestations like these could be putting families at risk and I can turn up, help them out and they can finally sleep easier at night afterwards.

"Also, no two jobs are ever the same, so it never gets boring, the variety always keeps it interesting."