If a wasp nest is near the house
Keep kids and pets indoors and stay well clear of the entrance. Call 111 if anyone has swelling of the lips, eyes or throat, or starts wheezing, after a sting. The National Poisons Centre on 0800 764 766 can advise.
What's local to Whitby
Duck Creek runs through it
LAWA says the Wai-o-Hata Duck Creek catchment spans about 1,032 hectares, from the Belmont Hills through Whitby, and feeds the Pāuatahanui Inlet estuary. The council lists its reserve as significant vegetation, saltmarsh included, and native fish habitat.
A suburb that traps
Pest Free Whitby began in 2017. By June 2024, Porirua News reported, it had over 400 registered community traps and more than 20 reserve traplines, aimed at rats, possums, hedgehogs, stoats and weasels.
Porirua's rules apply
Whitby is part of Porirua, so the city council deals with wasps and vermin in public places and owners deal with them on private property.
Paper wasps like open, wet ground
Greater Wellington's pest plan says Asian paper wasps often nest on houses, and large populations occur in open lowland habitats such as swamps and salt marshes. We can't say how many live along Duck Creek, but an open comb under the eaves is worth a look.
What the trap numbers tell you
Rats are around. The council said in 2018 that Pest Free Whitby had caught its 150th rat within months of starting, and the network has grown a lot since.
A backyard trap helps the suburb, but it won't reach a rat living in your ceiling or wall. That needs someone to find the way in and close it.
Questions for a Whitby job
- Is the nest a paper wasp, German wasp or common wasp, and does that change the job?
- Where do you think the rats are getting in?
- What will you put out, where, and how will it be kept away from pets?
- Is there anything near the creek or reserve I should report to the council?
Where we'd start in Whitby
If your place backs onto a reserve or the creek, say so straight away, because it tells a pest business where the pests are likely coming from. Report anything on public land to Porirua City Council, then tap Rats or mice or A wasp nest for the problem at home.
Want someone to look at it?
Tell us what you've seen and your postcode, and a local pest business that handles exactly that calls you to talk it through.
