Superb builders

Gimhani Waduge (Grade 7)
Kid Reporter No. F 02
Carmel Girls' Central College, Chilaw

There are various kinds of houses in the world. Not only humans, animals too build their own houses. Today I am going to tell you about a beautiful, fantastic, fifteen-storied building made by wasps.

Wasps' nest

Though I live in Chilaw town, I came across a wasps’ nest. Can you imagine a wasps’ nest in Chilaw town? Isn't it a wonder?
It was built on a palmyrah tree in Chilaw town. The owner of this land said it had been there for eight years. But a single wasp didn't hurt them.

Recently, a big cyclone had put down the wasp nest with the palmyrah palms attached to the nest. They had made the nest gathering about five palmyrah palms.

When I went there to see it, I couldn't believe my eyes. The wasp nest consisted of fifteen storeys. The rooms were equal in size and they were as smooth as rose petals. The shape of these rooms were hexagonal. To my amazement I couldn't find a single iron bar to hold up these fifteen storeys. No concrete work or cement work at all. But the whole nest was very hard, light and steady. Each room looked as if they had been put in a block or measured and built.

Hexagonal rooms

How clever are these tiny creatures? They don't measure, they don't use raw materials that we use. How fancy is this insects' world? We never think of these things. We can learn many things from this insects' world.

I have got another photograph of a wasp nest which was in a cadjan hut in a temple. It was shaped like a clay pot and there was only one hole to go in. I saw only one wasp was going inside. A worker in the temple said that it is also a kind of wasp nest.
Observing nature is one of my hobbies. I think it is a fantastic hobby, isn't it?