- Joined
- Jul 23, 2009
- Messages
- 36,704
- Reaction score
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- Location
- Ceredigion
- Hive Type
- 14x12
- Number of Hives
- 6
Yes .. we heard they had found one .. bit too close for comfort but hardly surprising with the amount of sea traffic between Southampton and France and the Channel Islands.
Extreminated or otherwise I would not be without veilThe size of that implies a large number of Queens on the breed
Do we belive DEFRA are up to the task if this expands as in France ?Yes .. we heard they had found one .. bit too close for comfort but hardly surprising with the amount of sea traffic between Southampton and France and the Channel Islands.
WELL .. By all accounts France didn't do a lot .. at least here there is Asian Hornet Watch and lots of us in the front line who know what to look out for. DEFRA do react quickly to any sightings and I believe this nest was the result of a sighting. We are clearly worried down here on the South Coast as our relatively mild climate - areas of woodland like the new Forest in the proximity of the port and a similar situation (if not worse) with cross channel traffic at Portsmouth is making us very vulnerable. With hundreds of beepers in a 10 mile radius there is a ready source of bees for them.Do we belive DEFRA are up to the task if this expands as in France ?
Do you think it practical or possible in the bigger picture that we become the hunter exterminators. I say this as I do not believe this present or previous gov would scale the finances required to control what is surely coming our wayWELL .. By all accounts France didn't do a lot .. at least here there is Asian Hornet Watch and lots of us in the front line who know what to look out for. DEFRA do react quickly to any sightings and I believe this nest was the result of a sighting. We are clearly worried down here on the South Coast as our relatively mild climate - areas of woodland like the new Forest in the proximity of the port and a similar situation (if not worse) with cross channel traffic at Portsmouth is making us very vulnerable. With hundreds of beepers in a 10 mile radius there is a ready source of bees for them.
Fortunately, there are lots of us monitoring for the Asian hornet and the public in this part of the world are becoming very familiar with the potential threat.
Southampton is only 5 hours away by truck, we are all at riskIt remains to be seen whether vv can get established here, my betting would be "yes" for the far south at least, further north hopefully not!
Yes, but hopefully not of establishment.Southampton is only 5 hours away by truck, we are all at risk
Hunters - or at least active observation, in a vicinity, is a pre-requisite of the existing organisation .. exterminators ? From everything I have heard this is a pretty exacting and somewhat dangerous procedure so I'd suggest leaving the nest destruction to those trained and equipped people who know what they are doing.Do you think it practical or possible in the bigger picture that we become the hunter exterminators. I say this as I do not believe this present or previous gov would scale the finances required to control what is surely coming our way
Yes ..I think the colder and wetter winters further North would, hopefully, detract from them being able to overwinter easily and also become established.Yes, but hopefully not of establishment.
Time will tell!
I do hope you are rightYes ..I think the colder and wetter winters further North would, hopefully, detract from them being able to overwinter easily and also become established.
They have in Jersey and very well organised tooDo you think it practical or possible in the bigger picture that we become the hunter exterminators.
It's nice to hope but I doubt that the north is so inhospitable that they won't be able to establish themselves in time.I do hope you are right
European hornets are expanding here.. So I suspect Asian would thrive.It's nice to hope but I doubt that the north is so inhospitable that they won't be able to establish themselves in time.
but they would have to compete with Crabro so it would be an uphill struggleEuropean hornets are expanding here.. So I suspect Asian would thrive.
Pure speculation on my part but I wonder whether it would really take long for AH to gain a dominant position.but they would have to compete with Crabro so it would be an uphill struggle
We've been fortunate this year. The weather has been bad for our bees, but it's also been bad for AHs. Think it was 72 nests last year, 18 this year so far, sightings in general down. With a drier spring it could have been a very different picture. Thank goodness they found the Southampton nest when they did, no doubt that in a few weeks it would have produced a lot of queens.Pure speculation on my part but I wonder whether it would really take long for AH to gain a dominant position.
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I'm all in favour of sensible monitoring and educated awareness but that's different to a stand back and watch approach. None of us know how this is all going to work out but we do know that insects are great survivors. I'm sure it's only a year ago that I was reading stuff saying that they couldn't survive a UK winter, never could get my head around that one.
hmm - I think that concept has been around for quite a few years, and used successfully elsewhereAndrew Durhams ideas on trojan baiting
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