Asian hornet education aid

[Martin C B]

Hi Everyone

I'm trying to source some dead insects to set in a resin block to help with educational identification of the Asian Hornet compared to our native species. I want to use someasian and european hornets as well as wasps and honey bees. Putting them all together makes sense to me

Just asking if anyone knows where I can source AH's, EH's and wasps in alcohol please

Many thanks

 

[Amari]

Hi Everyone

I'm trying to source some dead insects to set in a resin block to help with educational identification of the Asian Hornet compared to our native species. I want to use someasian and european hornets as well as wasps and honey bees. Putting them all together makes sense to me

Just asking if anyone knows where I can source AH's, EH's and wasps in alcohol please

Many thanks

https://www.thorne.co.uk/health-fee...ase-asian-hornet/asian-hornet-in-acrylic.html

 

[0bee-1]

https://www.thorne.co.uk/health-fee...ase-asian-hornet/asian-hornet-in-acrylic.html

In the winter sale as well at the moment

 

[Beegarden]

This is the latest release from BBKA. Personally, I think it is well resourced, but who am I to say? Just thought I'd throw it in.

 

[BeeKeyPlayer]

This is the latest release from BBKA. Personally, I think it is well resourced, but who am I to say? Just thought I'd throw it in.

Just had a quick glance. I'd say the writers have been well informed.

And this is the other file that's available:
https://www.bbka.org.uk/Handlers/Download.ashx?IDMF=2ccf1934-141e-4c82-96d8-6b5ff671e76c

 

[Karol]

This is the latest release from BBKA. Personally, I think it is well resourced, but who am I to say? Just thought I'd throw it in.

Sigh!

I'm interested to know how many beekeepers own 78 square kilometers of land around a previously found nest to be able to site 78 traps spaced at 1 per square kilometer. Really interested to know how many beekeepers own 314 square kilometers of land around a previously found nest to be able to site a further 236 bait stations spaced at 1 per square kilometer? That's a lot of unrealistic funding needed which is great for profiteering traps sellers but not very pragmatic for your 'average' beekeeper.

It's certainly a good idea to know how to identify velutina but the advice IMHO is weak without better information on what to look for. Monitoring is fine but there's little advice on supplementing monitoring with surveillance. What's the difference? Knowing for example what high nectar yielding plants are about that velutina is likely to visit. Every such high nectar yielding plant is a natural bait station that doesn't need maintenance but is worth surveying periodically. No need to set bait stations every km if you know your local flora and can include a periodic visit/walk past on your travels.

Same goes for wood pulping. Velutina will need to get wood from some where to build its nest. Most accessible sources will be wooden fencing and garden sheds made from aged featherboard. Just remember to keep an eye out on your travels each time you pass a wooden structure.

It doesn't have to be complicated.

 

[Karol]

Just had a quick glance. I'd say the writers have been well informed.

And this is the other file that's available:
https://www.bbka.org.uk/Handlers/Download.ashx?IDMF=2ccf1934-141e-4c82-96d8-6b5ff671e76c

Better!

 

[BeeKeyPlayer]

It's certainly a good idea to know how to identify velutina but the advice IMHO is weak without better information on what to look for. Monitoring is fine but there's little advice on supplementing monitoring with surveillance. What's the difference? Knowing for example what high nectar yielding plants are about that velutina is likely to visit. Every such high nectar yielding plant is a natural bait station that doesn't need maintenance but is worth surveying periodically. No need to set bait stations every km if you know your local flora and can include a periodic visit/walk past on your travels.

Same goes for wood pulping. Velutina will need to get wood from some where to build its nest. Most accessible sources will be wooden fencing and garden sheds made from aged featherboard. Just remember to keep an eye out on your travels each time you pass a wooden structure.

It doesn't have to be complicated.

This is very helpful. I hadn't thought of plants as natural bait stations - though it's obvious in hindsight.

Do you get frustrated at having to spell out every last detail?

I think the BBKA are doing their damnedest to do something and be as effective as they can. The people who produced the above leaflet are beekeepers with experience of AH and of writing and speaking about that.

Maybe they need to cast the net a bit wider than just beekeepers with a connection to AH?

Do you speak to the BBKA?

 

[fian]

A camellia, or any other shrub native to Asia, will serve as a support to locate a surveillance or trapping system.
Regarding distances and resources, the velutinas emerge in the vicinity of the previous year's nests and will move to another location. If the distance is not too much and the nest has endured the winter, they will not hesitate to reuse the material.

 

[Karol]

This is very helpful. I hadn't thought of plants as natural bait stations - though it's obvious in hindsight.

Hindsight is a wonderful but frequently elusive thing.

Do you get frustrated at having to spell out every last detail?

Not frustrated. More concerned. There are a lot of good people investing a considerable amount of their energy, time and passion into a deserving hobby/occupation and I would hate to see that undermined by a lack of understanding. The difficulty in our age of instant and infinite information is that sound advice gets swamped by lots of unqualified noise and if that noise is consistently loud enough especially if driven by vested interests it drowns out the sound advice.

I think the BBKA are doing their damnedest to do something and be as effective as they can. The people who produced the above leaflet are beekeepers with experience of AH and of writing and speaking about that.

Experience and exposure are two different things. There are thousands of beekeepers in Europe who are exposed to velutina. Does that make them experienced in eradicating velutina? So for example, it is disappointing to see the BBKA advocating the use of traps within a five kilometre radius of a previously found nest. Why? Because if there were to be any surviving overwintering queens in the vicinity the probability of catching them is negligible but the probability of catching and killing competing indigenous vespines is very high which will have precisely the wrong effect of removing competing vespines just where they are needed most. So the advice from the BBKA if followed will in my professional opinion achieve precisely the opposite of the desired effect and help create the opening for velutina to become established. The problem as I see it is that the BBKA's advice sets up conditions for ink blot incursions of velutina to domino outwards in the same way that has happened in Europe.

Maybe they need to cast the net a bit wider than just beekeepers with a connection to AH?

I still maintain that beekeepers are the best sentinels and that casting the 'net' too wide risks the very real danger of distracting the NBU from their essential work. Beekeepers are far more likely to correctly identify velutina for two simple reasons. Firstly they have a vested interest so are better informed. Secondly, and most importantly, apiaries provide optimal resource for velutina so if velutina is going to show its face it will more than likely do so at an apiary. This again falls into the category of surveillance along with high nectar bearing plants and wood pulp sources.

Do you speak to the BBKA?

I'm spread so thin I'm barely keeping my head above water. It's enough just to try to contribute to the forum. I try to stay clear of the politics of institutions.

 

[BeeKeyPlayer]

So for example, it is disappointing to see the BBKA advocating the use of traps within a five mile radius of a previously found nest.

Thank you for ALL the above.

Just one little detail: the BBKA guidance refers to a 5km radius, not 5 mile.

 

[Amaranth]

My understanding is that NBU are planning the brief surveillance trapping within 5km radius from previous mature nest. BBKA try to go along with NBU. That is aimed at intercepting recently emerged queens before they set off on their initial flight. After that we have another couple of months to pick up queens building their nests further away, and raising brood alone. During that time we can use intermittent repeated monitoring of bait when convenient, since they would be likely to pay return visits to a good food source. I agree with Karol that the 5km trapping runs the risk of bycatch removing competition, even with supposed selective traps. Particularly when the bycatch in spring would consist of various queens of their own kind, thus having a big impact.

 

[Amaranth]

Oh dear, have read the new poster more carefully - I see they plan to continue trapping within the 5km radius right up to November! That is one colossal amount of manpower, apart from the bycatch.

 

[Karol]

Thank you for ALL the above.

Just one little detail: the BBKA guidance refers to a 5km radius, not 5 mile.

Thank you. Error corrected. To confirm, the number of traps was calculated on km.

 

[Karol]

My understanding is that NBU are planning the brief surveillance trapping within 5km radius from previous mature nest. BBKA try to go along with NBU. That is aimed at intercepting recently emerged queens before they set off on their initial flight. After that we have another couple of months to pick up queens building their nests further away, and raising brood alone. During that time we can use intermittent repeated monitoring of bait when convenient, since they would be likely to pay return visits to a good food source. I agree with Karol that the 5km trapping runs the risk of bycatch removing competition, even with supposed selective traps. Particularly when the bycatch in spring would consist of various queens of their own kind, thus having a big impact.

I think it comes down to interpretation to some extent. Substituting in kill traps where velutina has been detected on bait stations is perfectly rational. What's not rational is using kill traps 'prophylactically' in the absence of any evidence of the presence of velutina. Slightly more complicated with high nectar bearing plants because to successfully catch and kill velutina foraging on such plants their access to the plants has to be interrupted to entice them into the traps. Easy enough to do. Just need to cover the plant at the crack of dawn with a cheap plastic dust sheet and site traps on the covered plant.

 

[Bettenham]

Bait stations ready and going out this weekend maybe?
Not the most attractive but at least I can keep an eye on it through the kitchen window!
I'm trying to source the most relevant poster for the general public as I have a lot of walkers passing my house at the weekends and I thought with a station and poster on view might generate some interest with the general public Any thoughts?
Bumbles and bees about in earnest today.

 

[Karol]

Bait stations ready and going out this weekend maybe?
Not the most attractive but at least I can keep an eye on it through the kitchen window!
I'm trying to source the most relevant poster for the general public as I have a lot of walkers passing my house at the weekends and I thought with a station and poster on view might generate some interest with the general public Any thoughts?
Bumbles and bees about in earnest today.

Two little thoughts:

Vespines demand respect because they are hazardous insects. Placing a bait station next to a doorway invites unnecessary risk.

You can improve the appeal of your bait station by changing the colour of the brown tub to bright apple red or lemon yellow.

 

[Bettenham]

Two little thoughts:

Vespines demand respect because they are hazardous insects. Placing a bait station next to a doorway invites unnecessary risk.

You can improve the appeal of your bait station by changing the colour of the brown tub to bright apple red or lemon yellow.

Thanks and noted.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Two little thoughts

Watched a Spotify podcast "Beauties and Beasties" You got glowing references, Karol

 

[Karol]

Watched a Spotify podcast "Beauties and Beasties" You got glowing references, Karol

As the beauty or the beast?

Not a podcast that I was aware of. Interesting dynamic though of pest controllers who are also vested in bee keeping.

I will if I get the chance watch the podcasts fully. I was disappointed with the first episode which focused on spring trapping and mitigation measures. I only had time to watch the first 40 mins or so I may be talking ahead of myself.

I take issue with the comments made by Trevor Swales in dismissing FC as an environmental disaster. It strikes me that his dismissal was based on uninformed assumptions and in the absence of a detailed environmental risk to benefit assessment. What was interesting is that Trevor was perfectly content to see circa 75g of neonicotinoids dispersed per hectare of land which arguably have similar potency as fipronil and yet slate the targetted use of FC where the amount used is millionths of a fraction of neonicotinoid dosing. His comments don't take into account that neonicotinoids are water soluble and essentially flow freely into water courses. Yes there is a remote possibility that the occasional vector might fall into a water course but the dose is miniscule far far smaller than the fipronil contamination caused by the innumerable number of treated dogs that recreationally enter the water.

There was no thought spared to the devastation caused by velutina if not successfully treated in the risk assessment behind the use of FC. Nor was there any assessment of the harms caused by the mitigation measures in comparison to the use of FC.

Presently there is no established population of velutina in the UK so FC is not justified or warranted. If the UK wants to stay 'free' from established velutina, trapping and mitigation are not the way to go.