Ashland authorities have been struggling to evict aggressive wasps that have invaded Montenegro Square in downtown Ashland. This surprising turf war first came into the public eye last week, when the Department of Public Works (DPW) decided to close off the square as they searched for an effective solution to the infestation, according to Boston.com.
These unwelcomed guests are not your typical, garden-variety wasps. The large, intrusive swarm has been assessed by Ashland’s Conservation Agent, Becca Solomon, who identified “at least 10 different species” in the mix. However, the exact reason behind this intriguing congregation of wasps, as well as the cause of their particularly aggressive behavior, remains undetermined, as noted by MetroWest Daily News.
Doug Small, Ashland Public Works Director, shared his own uneasy encounter with the wasps, telling CBS Boston: "I had one come right at me. We were eye to eye. I've never seen that before.” Faced with hundreds, possibly thousands, of aggressive wasps, town officials have been urgently trying to safely resolve the situation.
Ashland's Board of Health has approved spraying an eco-friendly insect repellent in the area, but it will not kill the wasps. According to another report from CBS Boston, the repellent's purpose is to drive the wasps away from Montenegro Square.
Recent landscaping work in the area could to be partly responsible for the insects' unusual behavior, according to a MetroWest Daily News article. Becca Solomon remarked that the work might have disturbed the wasps, making them more territorial and aggressive than normal. However, this remains purely speculative.
Residents are understandably concerned. According to CBS Boston, Samantha Carrera changed her route to the Ashland town library with her children to avoid the wasps. Others wonder whether more drastic measures ought to be considered. For now, the wasp situation remains unresolved, with the aggressive insects continuing to defy Ashland officials' efforts.
