Asian hornet nest Isle Of Wight concerns have widened after the National Bee Unit reported 53 nests and 167 sightings this year, even as the total number recorded fell from 93 nests and 389 sightings last year. Tony Warren of Asian Hornet Alert said the repeated discovery of nests in the same areas year after year suggested an established population.
Tony Warren on Kent
Warren said the drop in numbers was “good news”, but added: “However in the South East, particularly in Kent, the concentration of numbers there indicate there is breeding,” He said reported nest sightings also stretched to Norfolk, Yorkshire and along the Hampshire and Dorset coast.
Dan Etheridge on wider spread
Dan Etheridge of the National Bee Unit said the Animal & Plant Health Agency had helped produce fewer numbers through its eradication programme. He said DNA analysis in the past revealed there was very limited breeding going on in the UK, and described the South East as the corner of the country that gets the most hornets because it is very close to the French coast.
“This year we are seeing more of a wider spread, but they are isolated,” Etheridge said. He added: “But this patterned has continued from when we had our first nest in 2016.” This year’s reports also included Somerset, Essex, Derbyshire and Northamptonshire, showing the spread is no longer confined to one area.
Warren said the repeated discovery of nests in the same areas year after year suggested there was an established population, while also saying the hornets could have travelled from elsewhere with small pockets coming from abroad. The practical point for beekeepers and bees is that fewer sightings have not removed the risk; the pattern now being watched is where the nests keep turning up.
