Asian hornets in the UK. A chance of stopping them?

[Codford]

A must see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOnb3R2ozz4

Martyn Hocking details his experience of the Asian Hornet incursion at his Woolacombe apiaries in September 2017. He raises many questions about how beekeepers might protect their hives and their local etymological environment from this most voracious of predators.

 

[applejack33]

A talk by Martyn Hocking of Woolacombe (Devon) on his experience of the Asian Hornet last September. Go to U Tube, type his name or Asian Hornet Woolacombeto find it. Very interesting to listen to.

 

[Hivemaker.]

A talk by Martyn Hocking of Woolacombe (Devon) on his experience of the Asian Hornet last September. Go to U Tube, type his name or Asian Hornet Woolacombeto find it. Very interesting to listen to.

....or simply go to the post before yours and click on the link.

 

[majika]

Mazzamazda have you tried knocking them out with CO2 directly from the traps? Then treating with the custard leaving them to wake up and return to the nest and allowing release of the other pollinators as well?

 

[mazzamazda]

Mazzamazda have you tried knocking them out with CO2 directly from the traps? Then treating with the custard leaving them to wake up and return to the nest and allowing release of the other pollinators as well?

Good idea, I would really like not to handle them after taking a few stings this year.

I do see a few problems with this though. Firstly they dont use traps once they are looking for protein, I have heard some attractants work but I'm guessing when they dont have an easy favourite meal (Bees).

The next thing if I could use co2 is how to get it into the trap without the gas escaping, I do use it for queen introduction and takes about 15 minutes with no air leaks so it is lots of work for just a single hornet.

The last problem I see is of contamination, I am so careful applying the custard and know a guy who wiped out a beehive trying to treat a hornet, I dont really want them stumbling about and going near a hive, the best treated hornets are furious and fly about 3 times normal speed back to the nest.

I'm happy to try any ideas that I can test easily though.

 

[Jowlpost]

The problems will arise when there is a serious outbreak in several areas added to the apparently limited resources of DEFRA .. awareness must be created at every level to be on the look out. www.Bee.Watch has a tracking part to the app so as and when a sighting is confirmed tracks can immediately be gathered ready for when the big guns arrive. Suspected sighting can be tracked and if found not to be AH, can be deleted. its being shown as part of the Oxfordshire Action on bees on the 17th May.

 

[ladaok]

Us KIWI'S have been using Fipronil for some years now .... here is a special bait that has been developed by the Dept of conservation and can be purchased possibly by you fella's ?

https://www.doc.govt.nz/waspcontrol

 

[mazzamazda]

Updated recipe...with pictures


10 teaspoons white sugar
1 egg yolk
10 drops of Frontline (Fipronil) 0.25% w/v fipronil

Mix sugar into egg yolk and mix well, it should be a very sticky mixture.

Add 2 teaspoons of mixture to a small receptacle add 10 drops of Frontline (Fipronil) and stir well. Mixture is effective for 6 hours.

Catch Asian hornet with an Executioner Pro, better to use rechargable batteries 2.4v instead of 3v as you need a slight stun. You have approx 10 seconds before the hornet comes round, apply custard to Asian hornet thorax with a small stick preferably away from beehives and let it fly off straight away. No need to touch the hornet at all. It flies directly back to the nest 3-6 hours the hornet dies, depends on how many other hornets it feeds. Ideal if you can catch 10 hornets for maximum effect.

Discard receptacal and application stick carefully

 

[mazzamazda]

Some more pics....hopefully

 

[mazzamazda]

One more

 

[Erichalfbee]

Some more pics....hopefully

And away she flew.
Good stuff Mark. Thanks for posting.

 

[Beefriendly]

Nice one mazzamazda...
Now I'm wondering if that would work with wasps...it should do.

 

[Ian123]

Lol yes was wondering the same thing. I am think bottle trap with no liquid and suspend some bait maybe a quick shake to stun and apply

 

[Beefriendly]

Lol yes was wondering the same thing. I am think bottle trap with no liquid and suspend some bait maybe a quick shake to stun and apply

Yes, or another possibility... trap in a net/jar or whatever. Place in fridge until comatose. Apply...place in sun.

 

[mazzamazda]

As far as my limited knowledge of wasps goes (I prepare to stand corrected Karol), I think you really need wasps, they are really good pest gatherers early in the season. It is only now and with the sweet eating foragers they become a problem, kill the foragers, certainly. I think come spring you will have a big pest problem if you kill the nest and the queens that will be released.

VV are just a general nuisance, a health risk and kill pollinators, no good comes from them at all. IMO a different problem.

 

[Beefriendly]

As far as my limited knowledge of wasps goes (I prepare to stand corrected Karol), I think you really need wasps, they are really good pest gatherers early in the season..

The only people who need wasps alive Mazza are pest controllers who will eliminate nests for you later in the season when they become a problem. At a price.

 

[mazzamazda]

All VV gone.............

 

[mazzamazda]

I should probably give more detail in particular for the guys in Thailand who have seen some improvements too.

On the Friday 17th I spent some time catching and releasing, had a few problems not being able to catch enough to treat and lack of practice with the zapper. I maybe caught 10, 5 of which died either from over electrocution or getting paste over the wrong bits, if the paste is mixed perfectly when you apply it to the thorax you should be able to lift up the hornet by the stick you apply it with. I also tried with 20 drops of Fipronil which did kill the hornet quicker. By the end of the day I noticed less hornets visiting.

Saturday I noticed an increase of hornets from at least 4 nests, I applied more over the Saturday and Sunday, I would say another difficult few days and catching few. On Sunday evening I emailed Karol to find out why I had much smaller hornets visiting, turns out these are newly hatched and starving so much smaller, I caught a few but were pretty useless to treat.

Today, nothing, not a single hornet, it is that easy!



Notes
Dont bother catching small hornets to treat, they dont take the shock well and they cant carry enough paste.

As Karol says, only treating the thorax is essential.

Try 20 drops for a high kill rate

Stun as little as possible so the hornet flies off straight away.

Dont touch hornet, these stings BLOODY HURT

Best

Mark

 

[Beefriendly]

Mazza you ever considered, or tried, catching live Asian hornets in a trap and putting in fridge until they become comatose and then apply your deadly paste and release later?
And by the way...well done with your method and perseverance.

 

[Karol]

Mazza you ever considered, or tried, catching live Asian hornets in a trap and putting in fridge until they become comatose and then apply your deadly paste and release later?
And by the way...well done with your method and perseverance.

What kind of trap Prof and baited with what?