Imagine going about your day, doing your laundry, when you suddenly stumble upon a bizarre and somewhat horrifying discovery.

That's exactly what happened to one Australian woman from St Arnaud, Victoria, who found a strange mound of what appeared to be dirt around her laundry light bulb.

In a desperate plea for help, she took to social media and shared photos of the peculiar find, asking, 'Does anyone know what this is, or can I get a product from Bunnings, or am I going to be attacked by wasps, or something?'

The sight was enough to send shivers down the spine of anyone with a fear of insects or the unknown. (Consider this our final warning: the images below may be disturbing for some!)

A woman made a bizarre discovery in her laundry room. Image source: Facebook.

Social media users were equally horrified and intrigued by the startling find.

'What…is that?!' one commented.

'I’d be moving out,' another replied.

While a third said, 'Oh darling, this is when you burn the house down and run like hell.'

The woman explained that her laundry was outside and she hardly ever used the light, which is why she only just noticed the strange formation.

'I’ve sprayed it with fly spray. Nothing came out. I knocked it into a bucket and it came off. Just got to get the light globe out. Could be tricky,' the woman added.

The mystery was finally solved when Professor Alexander Mikheyev from the Research School of Biology at the Australian National University identified the mound as a nest belonging to a mud-dauber wasp.

'Generally, this is pretty typical,' Professor Mikheyev said.

'The wasps tend to build their nests in sheltered areas like under eaves or under a roof, so I think the location makes perfect sense.'

'The unusual part is that the wasp has covered the base of the bulb with a bit of extra clay.'

They typically build their nests in sheltered areas like under eaves or roofs, making the laundry light bulb an ideal location. The unusual part, according to Mikheyev, was that the wasp had covered the base of the bulb with extra clay.

The life cycle of a mud-dauber wasp is fascinating, albeit a bit grim.

'Like many other solitary wasps, mud-daubers are parasitoids.'

'In other words, they feed on the bodies of other arthropods.'

They capture their prey, paralyse it, and then their larvae develop on these paralysed prey items.

For example, they might hunt a spider, paralyse it, and then the larvae will eat it.

'The spider won’t die, and instead, larvae will eat it in such a way so that they first eat the non-life essential organs and it remains fresh during their whole development cycle,' the expert explained.

'Parasitoids are pretty grim. There are tens of thousands of species of them, and life for a lot of arthropods is ending up as prey for a parasitoid.'

Fortunately for us humans, we are not on the menu for mud-daubers.

Their sting can be painful but is generally non-threatening.

'They are really not going to attack you unless you aggressively threaten them.'

So, what should you do if you find yourself face-to-face with a mud-dauber nest?

'I would check to see that it’s not active, and then you could fairly safely scrape it off,' the professor advised.

'Maybe with some kind of blade.'

'There could be a little bit of residue left that you might have to experiment with some solvents to clean off because they are stuck on quite well with a mixture of mud and saliva. But it's pretty harmless.'

The good news is that you're not going to have a colony of wasps swarming after you.

The wasps inside the nest will either be larvae or pupa which are harmless and immobile.

'By the time they're actually ready to fly out, they are going to chew their way out and escape. They're not going to hang out inside their nest because they're going to need to get food.'

Mikheyev also suggested leaving nests where they are so you don’t damage them.

'If you scrape it off and put it elsewhere then it's exposed to potentially the elements and ants will actively seek them out and eat them.'

'While people will vary about how they feel about this and their property, I let the wasps hatch and then I take the rest off.'

Key Takeaways

• An Australian woman discovered a strange mound around a light bulb in her laundry room, which she thought might be a wasp’s nest.
• The nest was later confirmed by Professor Alexander Mikheyev from the Research School of Biology at the Australian National University to be that of a mud-dauber wasp, a solitary wasp species known for parasitoid behaviour, capturing and paralysing prey for their larvae.
• The professor advised that the nest is harmless to humans and could be safely scraped off if inactive and that mud-daubers are unlikely to attack humans unless threatened.
• If the nest is outside and not a nuisance, it may be better to leave it undisturbed so the developing wasps can hatch without being exposed to predators or the elements.

Have you ever found something strange or unexpected in your home? Share your stories with us in the comments below.

 

[MariaG]

My hubby can be strange and do unexpected things at times.
I'll leave him as he is so the ants don't attack.

 

[IAN3005]

It could be termites.... in that case, get an exterminator quickly as they may have attacked the supporting structure .

 

[Bridgit]

It could be termites.... in that case, get an exterminator quickly as they may have attacked the supporting structure .

No not termites - they are a hornet and they collect mud and build on anything - including you if you stand still long enough. The Australian bush is full of them - when they build on my pot plants, shoes, chairs, verandah floors, hats, tools etc I knock them off and take the nest outside and crush it in the garden - there are too many without breeding anymore.

 

[mylittletibbies]

Simple, it's a hornet or wasp nest, nothing out of the ordinary.

 

[Suzanne rose]

My hubby can be strange and do unexpected things at times.
I'll leave him as he is so the ants don't attack.

thank you that made my day