The South West’s Asian hornet training day
Alan Hepper, David Newell, Martin Phipps, Ian Walters
On a miserable January Saturday, several Wiltshire beekeepers ventured into deepest darkest Somerset for the South West’s Asian Hornet Convention and Training Day. It was a full day of inspirational sabre-ratling to get ready to repel the forthcoming hordes of non- native Asian hornets invading Britain from across the Channel. Well, not quite. It was an update on what we know about Asian hornet’s lifecycle, the latest research, the role of the first responders and what has worked well in tracking the invader. Run by Somerset BKA, and in particular Lynne Ingram, several eloquent and well-informed speakers brought us up to date.
Dr Sarah Bunker, entomologist and author of The Asian Hornet Handbook (
www.asianhornethandbook.com), told us about the insect’s lifecycle – what to expect and when. Not an owner’s manual as the name might imply, the handbook includes sections on the trapping, tracking and advance of the pest.
Dr Peter Kennedy told us about the current research by his team at Exeter University. The high number of scientific papers produced in recent years and the network of institutions now engaged show that the topic is an emerging area of research. We can only hope that some major breakthroughs will be forthcoming.
At the moment, the responsibility is with the authorities to confirm the identity of an Asian hornet, but it is likely that local AHATs (Asian Hornet Action Teams) and specialists will be called to assist with the evidence-gathering before a full response is provided. It seems that if the Asian hornet establishes itself, the National Bee Unit will not respond and the responsibility will fall to beekeepers and others. The need for a cohort of competent people to respond to initial reports was highlighted.
Alistair Christie, the Asian hornet co- ordinator for Jersey, described the rapid expansion of the pest on the island over the past three years – a worrying scenario for the UK if the Asian hornet establishes
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Six workshops also briefed us on various themes: tracking skills, mapping (including digital map usage), characteristics of the Asian hornet in the field, trapping and fiting telemetry to hornets plus a county co-ordinators’ workshop.
itself here. He discussed the techniques and the lessons they had learned. Beekeepers from the South West who had been over to assist in helping to find nests gained experience in how to capture, trap and track the hornets (although trapping and releasing the Asian hornets is not lawful in the UK at the moment because they are not a native species). Interestingly, some of the Jersey tracking volunteers have no interest in beekeeping and some are even afraid of insects, but they have roles to assist in the identification of nest sites. The tales of removing nests covered a range of habitats from 30m poplar trees to hedges and sea cliffs were intriguing and entertaining.
Asian hornets in France are spreading at 75km per year. If they become established in the UK, complacency will not be an option. Inter-club and inter-county cooperation and support will be essential. The Asian hornet is no respecter of county boundaries.
As beekeepers, we are likely to be first to notice the problems from the Asian hornet (honey prices in Jersey have already increased to £14.95 per pound!), but the effect will be wide, affecting other pollinators, horticultural and agricultural workers who may disturb nests during their operations, and nests in public places.
If you are not already a member of your association AHAT, do consider it. At the very least, please install non-kill monitoring traps at your home or your apiary. There are multiple designs, and many can be made at very litle cost. The Asian hornet queens have a sweet tooth in spring; commercial atractants such as Trappit (formerly called Sutera) are available or you can make your own – there is plenty of guidance online.
When you place your traps, please inform your local AHAT co-ordinator as well as Bee Base to ensure that there are no gaps in coverage (entering the details on Bee Base does not necessarily filter down to local AHATs).
On a more positive note, active AHAT members have found it a sometimes frustrating, but a generally rewarding and enjoyable experience.
Bee Craſt April 2020
Photos: Gilles San Martin CC BY-SA and Barry Hulat
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