Asian hornets (Vespa velutina nigrithorax) cause significant environmental damage and sightings should be reported to the Non-Native Species Secretariat (NNSS) as soon as you can. 
  • Asian hornets are most active between April and November (peaking in  August/September) and are inactive over the winter. 
  • If they get established in the UK it is predicted they will have a devastating impact on our insect population and ecosystem.
  • A number of sightings have been recorded in the UK since 2016 and we fear numbers will inevitably increase.  
  • In Jersey, France and large areas of Western Europe they are stripping the environment bare of insects including managed honeybee colonies. 

What can you do
  • Be vigilant!
  • If you have connections with local gardening groups, garden centres, wildlife groups and trusts etc, please spread the word.
  • The Non Native Species Secretariat is offering a series of resources free of charge including posters and identification sheets which you can distribute to others. 
  • Download the Asian hornet app which has photos to assist with identification and can be used to report any sightings: ​
​          Asian Hornet Watch app for iPhone  
          Asian Hornet Watch app for Android
​
If you spot an Asian hornet
Take some photos and/or capture a specimen and send them to the NNSS for identification; if the sighting is positive, the NNSS will trigger further investigations by our bee inspectors. 

SBKA has set up an Asian Hornet Action Team (AHAT) led by Lynne Ingram. Our AHAT is county-wide comprising of at least one member from each Division. 
​Lynne can be contacted on ​asianhornet@somersetbeekeepers.org.uk

Images of Asian hornets to download are available on our image gallery.

PictureThe Asian hornet looks like a large black wasp with a bright orange face. Photo courtesy of Jean Haxaire, The French Natural History Museum

​

What do they look like?
Asian hornets are rather like large black wasps with a single yellow band, orange face and yellow tipped legs. Queens are up to 30mm long, workers up to 25mm.
Look out for: 
  • black thorax 
  • abdomen mostly black except for an orange stripe
  • legs brown with yellow ends 
  • head black with orange-yellow face
  • Queens buzz quite deeply, like a bumblebee
 Likely habitat? 
Asian hornets are easiest to see around flowers and bee hives in late summer and early autumn. Nests can be high up in deciduous trees, in hedges and in buildings. 
Picture
The Asian hornet nest discovered low down in a hedge in North Devon in September 2017
What are Somerset Beekeepers doing?
  • We have set up a county-wide Asian Hornet Action Team comprising beekeepers from all of our 12 Divisions.
  • We have adopted an Asian hornet identification policy. ​
  • We are working with organic national dairy company Yeo Valley to raise awareness among their customers and staff.
  • We are distributing more leaflets and identification cards to all members with the 2019 Year Book.
  • We support the work of Dr Pete Kennedy and his colleagues at the University of Exeter who recently published a research paper showing how Asian hornet nests can be found by radio-tracking.
  • Some of our members joined Jersey beekeepers and scientists from Exeter University in Jersey in the summer of 2018 ​to track Asian hornets back to their nests. [See Members' blog on the homepage]
  • We continue to raise awareness of the threat Asian hornets pose to honeybees, other insects and the environment with the media, public, Somerset’s MPs and councils.

To download a PDF of our Asian hornet ID cards and fliers, click the files below. 
ah_card.pdf
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ah_flyer_v2.3.pdf
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Picture
The European hornet is more like a large wasp with bright yellow stripes. Photo courtesy of Jason Learner, National Bee Unit
How to detect Asian hornets
The NBU recommends DIY traps; alternatively traps are available to purchase from beekeeper equipment suppliers. 
It's recommended that you observe activity carefully around your hives especially in the autumn.
The National Bee Unit has added a new feature to BeeBase to help understand UK Asian hornet surveillance. 
Download the Asian hornet app which has photos to assist with identification and can be used to report any sightings:
​Asian Hornet Watch app for iPhone 
Asian Hornet Watch app for Android
And, of course, if you spot a nest don't try and destroy it yourself.  Alert the authorities! ​​
BBC Somerset invited us to talk about our AHAT on Claire Carter's breakfast show in February, 2019. 
bbc_somerset_claire_carter___lynne_ingram_19.2.19.aifc
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In 2018, BBC covered Lynne's trip to Jersey  when she joined beekeepers, volunteers and academics to track Asian hornets. 
Bee Craft hosted an Asian hornet special webinar in September 2018 which is well worth a watch. It featured ​Colin Lodge (who set up the AHAT website), Gerry Stuart (who has helped to track Asian hornets in Jersey), and Kevin Baughen (who copes with Asian hornets on a daily basis in France).