“Citizen science” and sharp-eyed members of the public have been praised for their efforts to stop the yellow-legged – or Asian – hornet from becoming established in the UK.
A new study has shown that although the UK has suitable climate and habitat for this voracious predator of pollinators, effective action has prevented it from making the UK its home.
The invasive, non-native species, which arrived in France in a container of pottery from China about 20 years ago, can kill 50 bees a day and has devastated honeybee colonies in France and Italy.
It was first seen in the UK in 2016, but while there have been regular sightings here, including 45 confirmed so far this year, mostly in Kent and East Sussex, the National Bee Unit has responded rapidly and destroyed the insects and nests that have been found.
A study by the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH) into the suitability of European countries for the establishment and spread of the yellow-legged hornet set out the threat that would have been posed by the predator in the UK, Germany and the Netherlands if rapid eradication had not taken place.
The EU-funded study, published in the Journal of Applied Ecology, found that over 1,500 square kilometres in the UK would have been colonised by 2020 without action to tackle the species. As of December 2023, it is considered to be established in France, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, Portugal, Italy, Switzerland, Germany and Jersey.
Lead author Dr Richard Hassall of UKCEH said there had been “no significant spread” reported in the UK and went on: “This is due to the fantastic efforts by vigilant members of the public who report suspected sightings of yellow-legged hornets, then rapid action by the authorities to locate and eradicate the insects and nests found.
“Significant resources have gone into monitoring and slowing the spread of this invasive, non-native species in the UK and parts of Europe, so it is encouraging to find these efforts appear to have been effective.”
UKCEH oversees an alert system for Britain which enables people to report potential sightings of a number of priority invasive, non-native species, including the yellow-legged hornet. So far this year the Asian Hornet Watch app has received around 12,500 reports of sightings, though only a fraction of these have gone on to be confirmed as yellow-legged hornets.
Professor Helen Roy of UKCEH and the University of Exeter, a co-author of the study, said: “We are grateful to everyone who is helping to track the spread of the yellow-legged hornet. The contributions of volunteers to citizen science initiatives such as the Asian Hornet Watch app are inspiring.”
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