For the first time in five months, Asian hornets that “attack” honey bee hives and kill the bees have been discovered in the UK.
After one of the hornets was discovered in Chelmsford, Essex, the National Bee Unit advised beekeepers to “stay watchful.”
It is the first time an Asian hornet has been seen since one was discovered in Felixstowe, Suffolk, in April.
Additionally, according to the Natural History Museum, our honeybees might be eaten by yellow-legged and striped hornets.
According to bee researcher Gavin Broad, hornets invade honeybee hives by loitering outside and snatching workers as they enter and exit.
They dismember them and feed their young the thorax.
When the hornets were accidentally discovered in France in 2004, it is thought that they entered the continent via a shipment of products from east Asia.
The bee population in France is said to have been wiped out, and they have subsequently moved to neighboring nations.
The Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defrachief )’s plant and bee health officer, Nicola Spence, told the publication: “By making sure we are alerted to potential sightings as early as possible, we can take swift and effective action to stamp out the threat posed by Asian hornets.
As a result of this verified observation, “we are working quickly to find and analyze any nests in the vicinity.”
The hornets aren’t any more dangerous to people’s health than a European hornet, but anybody who sees one is asked to report it to the authorities.