Know your hornets!

There is a new and dangerous threat to the UK’s honeybees - Asian hornets. 

Asian hornets prey on pollinators including honeybees. A single Asian hornet can consume up to 50 bees daily – they can efficiently process a honeybee in under two minutes. So there is a big campaign to locate and destroy Asian hornet nests to prevent them becoming established in the UK. Early nests are commonly found in low places such as hedges, brambles and garden structures. Later in the year nests can be found higher up in trees. 

The first thing to do is spot the different between the Asian hornet and the European hornet – which is being seen more often in Crofton and Sparrow Woods.  

The Asian hornet has an entirely black velvety thorax, is never active at night and overall looks slightly smaller and much darker than our local species. There is a government programme to control them. So, if you find one please use the Asian Hornet Watch app or online at www.nonnativespecies.org/asianhornet to report the sighting.

In August a Group member found a hornet nest in the trunk of an oak - which last year had been occupied by bees. The good news is that these have been identified as European hornets. Her photo and videos are included below.