Asian Hornet - Update

[Erichalfbee]

What is it you want to know

Ah wonderful
Did the nest produce any queens?
What is the evidence that the hornet is already here and breeding (apart from the Tetbury incident)?
Is the NBU advice to Spring trap in the immediate area where the nest was found or will it be that we should ALL be trapping?
There is an article in The BBC news declaring that DEFRA have contained the hornet and there is no problem. Is that true? There is nothing on Beebase.
Thank you very much...some of us are fielding silly questions from friends regarding the hornets danger to people

 

[Pete D]

Ah wonderful
Did the nest produce any queens? I believe the nest is still being studied up in York to ascertain the exact answer to this When a definitive answer is reached I am sure there will be an update.
What is the evidence that the hornet is already here and breeding (apart from the Tetbury incident)? None that I am aware of.
Is the NBU advice to Spring trap in the immediate area where the nest was found or will it be that we should ALL be trapping? I am sure that in due time there will be advice about spring / summer trapping. This will be based on all the information, findings and experience gathered from the Tetbury incident and from discussions with French experts.
There is an article in The BBC news declaring that DEFRA have contained the hornet and there is no problem. Is that true? There is nothing on Beebase.
Thank you very much...some of us are fielding silly questions from friends regarding the hornets danger to people

Certainly no more Asian hornets were found in Tetbury after the nest was destroyed. I am sure that a statement and advice will be forthcoming long before the active season. Why rush it, there is nothing anybody can do right now other than make sure the information they give out is accurate, so better to take time and be in best position with all the facts and answers to ensure any advice given is the correct advice. Lets face it, if they get it wrong they will face severe criticisim.
Frustrating though it is we all just have to wait until the nest examinations are complete and all the information gathered before policy can be decided on going forward. We as beekeepers can not do anything right now as its the quiet season.
I think the team at the NBU done a great job in this instance and should be commended for it.

 

[user 6228]

Certainly no more Asian hornets were found in Tetbury after the nest was destroyed. I am sure that a statement and advice will be forthcoming long before the active season. Why rush it, there is nothing anybody can do right now other than make sure the information they give out is accurate, so better to take time and be in best position with all the facts and answers to ensure any advice given is the correct advice. Lets face it, if they get it wrong they will face severe criticisim.
Frustrating though it is we all just have to wait until the nest examinations are complete and all the information gathered before policy can be decided on going forward. We as beekeepers can not do anything right now as its the quiet season.
I think the team at the NBU done a great job in this instance and should be commended for it.

we got an update from our regional inspector... They continued baiting and searching for hornets after the eradication but all they found were the native ones and wasps. This indicated there was still plenty for the asians to go out hunting, but they werent there any Asians hunting anymore. When they then inspected the nest They think they got the nest before the queens left.

Interesting information about France... there is no national control program, its done area by area and some dont do anything!!!!

 

[Erichalfbee]

Thank you PeteD you know as much as the rest of us then.
Derek. That is good news
Plenty of Honey is good as a boot on French Ground. Lots of really useful information

 

[MartinL]

. . . . . . after the Julia Bradbury incident on Countryfile, the BBC won't let any reporters get within 50 yards of a hive without full PPE. . . . . .

Another case of an untrained person doing the risk assessment?

 

[domino]

Another case of an untrained person doing the risk assessment?

I remember watching that on TV and saying to my wife 'she's got long hair, she'll get stung' and then boom.

Bee and hair don't mix.

 

[user 6228]

I remember watching that on TV and saying to my wife 'she's got long hair, she'll get stung' and then boom.

Bee and hair don't mix.

the curious thing is that just wearing a hat can some times be enough

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

the curious thing is that just wearing a hat can some times be enough

That image is pretty disturbing!

 

[Anduril]

the curious thing is that just wearing a hat can some times be enough

Must get very cold without any insulation.

 

[MuswellMetro]

That image is pretty disturbing!

Yes, agree, i would want at least a pair of Budgie smugglers as well as the hat, you have got to have somewhere to put your tool

 

[domino]

the curious thing is that just wearing a hat can some times be enough

How do you get hats on the bees?

 

[charlievictorbravo]

:.....
a good couple of videos on treatment:

https://youtu.be/VlEctITs73w

https://youtu.be/PO5_povzoP4 good to see a conservation minded treatment specialist. you can clearly see the common hornets nest is "A" typical, unlike the Asian one. Wait for him to treat this second nest, see the reaction from the Asian hornets. You can imagine why people die just wearing a beekeepers suit!! Like he says, without his suit he would be dead, or very close to it.

In light of the very thick suits the specialists were wearing in the second video (and the reaction they had from the Asian Hornets) , it's surprising the the guy doing the work with the poles in the first video only had a bee jacket with no veil in place. Nevertheless, the treatment with the insecticide delivered via a pressure pump and some telescopic poles was very effective.

Thanks Richard

CVB

 

[Karol]

<snip>

We as beekeepers can not do anything right now as its the quiet season.
I think the team at the NBU done a great job in this instance and should be commended for it

Sorry Pete D but I think there are things that beekeepers can do during the quite period - a bit of research and preparation!

Research to make sure they can accurately and promptly identify velutina. Study as many pictures and video clips from trusted sources as necessary.

Prepare an action plan of what to do and who to contact. Beekeepers are the first line of defence. Working in isolation isn't clever. Having a rapid response network through local BKAs will be vastly important so as to help triangulate the action of the NBU who I agree need to be commended on their response to the Tetbury outbreak.

 

[charlievictorbravo]

.... the NBU who I agree need to be commended on their response to the Tetbury outbreak.

I agree but it's a pity that the senior staff at the NBU and APHA feel the need to hide their light, and the light of their field staff, under a bushel.

Maybe they've sold the film rights to Steven Spielberg and don't want to issue a spoiler!

CVB

 

[Itchy]

Loading a hornet with enough fipronil to kill an nest is just fanciful. It takes heaps more than that to kill an ant nest!
My money is on tracking technology following workers back to the nest for destruction.
In terms of hive defence, just watch the hawking action of the hornets, a strategy will soon be worked out.

 

[Karol]

Couple of things Itchy.

Who said anything about loading a single hornet? It's a campaign approach repeated until no more hornets visit the hive.

If done early enough in the development of the nest, then there is every chance that the queen will fall victim to toxic trophallaxis putting paid to the nest before it becomes a major problem.

I'm sure there will be alternative technology to track hornets back to the nest. But that's likely to be both expensive and specialist which will limit the breadth of use to exclude most if not all beekeepers.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I agree but it's a pity that the senior staff at the NBU and APHA feel the need to hide their light, and the light of their field staff, under a bushel.

Maybe they've sold the film rights to Steven Spielberg and don't want to issue a spoiler!

CVB

It's a common failing in government departments - the reluctance to broadcast any good news story, show their staff in a good light to the public or pass on any information that could be of use in future

Sent from my SM-A310F using Tapatalk

 

[Anduril]

It's a common failing in government departments - the reluctance to broadcast any good news story, show their staff in a good light to the public or pass on any information that could be of use in future

Sent from my SM-A310F using Tapatalk

They always use the media first to get the message out instead of informing the people who matter.

 

[Plenty of honey]

In light of the very thick suits the specialists were wearing in the second video (and the reaction they had from the Asian Hornets) , it's surprising the the guy doing the work with the poles in the first video only had a bee jacket with no veil in place. Nevertheless, the treatment with the insecticide delivered via a pressure pump and some telescopic poles was very effective.

Thanks Richard

CVB

yes , I agree but being a professional i imagine he knew their limits and that because of the distance between him and the top of the tree he would have been fairly safe. I did wonder that myself!

 

[Brian Bush]

Sorry Pete D but I think there are things that beekeepers can do during the quite period - a bit of research and preparation!

Research to make sure they can accurately and promptly identify velutina. Study as many pictures and video clips from trusted sources as necessary.

Prepare an action plan of what to do and who to contact. Beekeepers are the first line of defence. Working in isolation isn't clever. Having a rapid response network through local BKAs will be vastly important so as to help triangulate the action of the NBU who I agree need to be commended on their response to the Tetbury outbreak.

I agree with you Karol. We should be making sure we recognise an Asian hornet so that we do not have a repeat of the Mendips fiasco. It must have cost a fortune in manpower and time. We need to be able to identify the problem so that scarce and expensive resources can be put to the best use.