This article was first published in April 2021.
A New Zealand man has sparked a nest of conversation after sharing a "brilliant" trick to trap pesky wasps - and ginger beer is a key ingredient.
Regan Ranby posted a video to a public farming group, explaining he had used the trick to easily collect 50 wasps.
Ranby says it's useful if you're having "trouble with German wasps harassing a beehive, or just hate the little twats like me".
"Grab an empty soft drink bottle, cut the top off and push the top bit upside down inside the bottom," he writes alongside the video.
"Then fill about half of the bottom bit with ginger beer. I was hoping for three or four, but there must be like 50 in there."
Ranby also reminded social media users to not waste "those Bundabergs", and use the "cheap stuff" to trap the pests.
Many commented on Ranby's post - some calling it "brilliant" - sharing they had also tried his trick before, but with a lot of different soft drinks and sweet concoctions.
"I used a mixture of jam and orange juice in the yellow traps from Mitre 10. Got hundreds, sent the wasps nuts," one person wrote.
Another social media user had a trick for attracting wasps, but not endangered bees.
"I got told sugary drink to put a small amount of vinegar in to deter bees."
To control several wasp nests over a large area, the Department of Conservation (DOC) recommends using Vespex. This is a meat-based bait that is deployed from a bait station, and the user must pass an online test before purchasing it.
To destroy a single nest, DOC encourages Kiwis to use insecticide, which can be purchased from homeware stores or the supermarket.
New Zealand has some of the highest densities of German wasps in the world. This is due to the fact they have no natural predators here, as well as our mild winters and abundance of food.
The largest wasp nest ever was discovered in Waimauku, on the outskirts of Auckland. It was 3.75 metres tall and 1.7 metres wide.
