Close to home in Mount Waverley
Valley Conservation Reserve
The City of Monash calls it a 15 hectare bushland reserve, home to more than 55 native species, including 32 significant plant species, and a vital habitat for a wide range of fauna.
Wasps in summer
Monash says wasps are more common in summer and that it doesn't remove nests on private property. A nest in a public park, reserve or nature strip is one to phone the council about.
Possums and your trees
The council says possums are protected from harm or capture under the Wildlife Act 1975. If they're stripping a tree, it suggests a tree guard or possum band on the trunk.
Termites on the certificate
Part 2 of a Monash Property Information Certificate shows whether a property is flood-prone, termite-prone or in an alpine area. It's useful when you're building or buying, but it can't tell you what's in the walls.
If you think there's a wasp nest nearby
Watch from a distance
On a warm afternoon, look for a steady line of wasps heading to one spot. Most European wasp nests are in the ground, so check the lawn, garden beds and retaining walls.
Keep everyone clear
Move kids and pets away from the area, and don't block, spray or poke at the hole. Disturbing a nest is how people get stung several times over.
Know the emergency signs
If someone who's been stung has trouble breathing or swelling of the face or throat, call 000.
Get it treated
Note where it is and take a photo from a safe distance, then tap A wasp nest with your postcode.
Possums, and what a pest business can do
Plenty of people here search for possum removal. In Victoria that really means proofing: working out how the animal reaches the roof and closing the gap while it's out. Any catch and release has to happen on your own property, within 50 metres of where it was caught and after sunset, and it's only for brushtails. Trapping a ringtail without a permit is illegal.
Rats and mice are a different story. They aren't protected, and the first signs are usually droppings and gnawing. Our Melbourne rat and mouse page explains what a good job looks like.
Where we'd start with pests in Mount Waverley
If wasps keep landing on the outdoor table in summer, find the line they're flying before you do anything else. That tells you whether the nest is on your block, a neighbour's or the reserve side, and who needs to act.
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.
