A pest control service said they were shocked to find hundreds of wasps in a Ribble Valley home, despite it being the middle of winter.
Burnley-based pest management and prevention business, Atlas Environmental Services, attended a property in Chaigley.
The home owner called the company after being ‘greeted’ by hundreds of live wasps after opening the stair hatch.
Upon inspection, Atlas Environmental Services found hundreds of wasps living in the attic space that were “huddled together in cracks and crevices”.
A spokesperson for the company said: “We were shocked to hear that wasps were reported to still be alive and thriving in late January.
“Wasp nests usually die out around late September to October but in recent years we have witnessed the nests still thriving in November.
“This was a first for ourselves to see such a large infestation in January.”
The business used a dust insecticide treatment to treat the pest infestation.
A spokesperson said: “The nest was located within wooden panelling behind the roof tiles which was very awkward to treated directly.
"We used a dust insecticidal treatment procedure followed by a ULV fogging treatment for a fast knockdown with the wasps evident in the converted attic space.
“All wasps were then vacuumed up accordingly and disposed of leaving the homeowners very happy indeed with our services provided.”
Atlas Environmental Services carry out approximately 200 to 300 wasp nest treatments throughout the summer months and are kept busy throughout this period, with an average of four or five per day that require treatments and removals.
In the peak summer months average wasp nest sizes are approximately 5,000 in a thriving nest but can reach up to 9,000 in a very healthy nest.
It’s not the first time the company has been called out to a pest problem in Lancashire.
The team received reports of rats in a Burnley loft last month.
A spokesperson for the company said there may be as many as 12 rats living in the attic and estimate they have been there for around two years.
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