Fears are growing that invasive Asian Hornets have ‘dug trenches’ in mainland Britain – after the discovery of the earliest ever queen. The killer insects are feared to have survived the winter after being found on the British mainland a whole month earlier than last year.
Fresh warnings were issued after the confirmed sighting in a potting shed in Ash in Kent on March 8 – just five miles from where a nest destroyed last year.
It has added to growing fears the Asian Hornet has launched a full invasion of the UK – with calls for a ‘Dad’s Army’ to now help stop the spread of the species.
An ongoing battle has long-raged in the Channel Islands ‘frontline’ with hundreds of nests being destroyed annually in a bid to stop them decimating the native bee population.
But it is now feared they have established a fresh route from the continent and are targeting the coastline around Kent.
Following the latest sighting made by the Ash Horticultural Society, the British Beekeeping Association has urged people to look out for and report the hornets, as queens come out of hibernation in the warmer weather.
Diane Drinkwater, chair of the British Beekeepers’ Association (BBKA) said: “I suspect this is a winter queen that was born here. That has not been confirmed, but that would be logical. Their life cycle is not advanced enough for them to have developed workers by this point. So I suspect it has not migrated from abroad, but we may have missed a nest somewhere. We have seen a lot of rain so a lot of places where they hibernate might have been flooded. We always hope to see a lot of them die off.”
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) confirmed the hornet was captured on March 11 and was confirmed as one after being analysed in a lab.
Last year they weren’t found on the mainland until mid April.
The species began to spread through Europe in 2004 after arriving in the south of France inside a freight ship. They were was spotted in the British Isles on the Channel Island of Jersey in late 2016. But after years of establishing themselves on Jersey and Guernsey the battleground shifted to southern England.
The hornets are able to kill with one sting among people who have an allergy while they also pose a threat to the environment and native species.
Sue Knights, Asian Hornet Coordinator for the Kent Beekeeping Association, said: “The Asian Hornet is an invasive species. It has arrived across the channel from France and is causing problems concerning pollination and honey crops.”
“Last year 72 nests were discovered and destroyed. This year we are concentrating on trying to find queens so that they can be destroyed and also hopefully not build new nests this year. If they do build new nests this year then our job will be to find them and eradicate them.”
The queens will have been hibernating over winter, experts say, but as the weather warms up they will become more active.
Mrs Knights added: “When the temperature reaches between 12 and 14 degrees for at least three days, the queens will awake from hibernation. They will then build what we call a primary nest, very much akin to a wasp.”
“It would be about the size of a tennis ball and they’re normally in very sheltered places like the inside of shed roofs, porches, that sort of thing. Then the queen will then build the workforce and eventually when she’s got enough of a workforce, they will then build what’s called a secondary nest. These can be up to a metre in width.”
Anyone who sees one of the stinging insects is urged to report it through the Asian Hornet app. They have a dark brown or black velvety body, with a characteristically dark abdomen and yellow-tipped legs. Beekeepers are worried about an infestation growing, as it could affect food supplies.
Mrs Knights added: “At the moment, it is spreading across Europe at a rapid rate and is having an impact on food supplies and honey production. So it is really important that we stay ahead of this.”
“If an Asian hornet comes across a colony of bees, and then they go home and let all the other hornets know, then that’s like fast food for them. The Asian Hornet captures insects, it essentially wraps them up into what’s called a protein parcel, takes them back to the nest and then feeds them to the young.”
“The young then reward the adult hornets with a sticky substance, akin to honey.”
