App aims to stop spread of honey bees’ deadly foes
Anew app is being launched to help people report possible sightings of an invasive hornet which kills honey bees.
The free smartphone app aims to help stop the spread of the Asian hornet (Vespa velutina), which was first confirmed in Britain last September when a nest of the insects was found in the Tetbury area of Gloucestershire.
Experts say the Asian species, which at up to 1in (2.5cm) long is smaller than native European hornets, pose no greater risk to human health than bees.
But they prey on important pollinating insects such as honey bees and could do serious damage to colonies here, which have not evolved to cope with the threat.
The app, called Asian Hornet Watch, allows people to quickly and easily report sightings of the species and send pictures of suspect insects to experts at the National Bee Unit.
It can also help people judge whether an insect may actually be an Asian hornet, providing pictures of other species it could be confused with and information about its size, appearance and the times of the year it might be seen.
UK Environment Department (Defra) Minister Lord Gardiner said: “This innovative new app is designed to be easy to use and allows people to report quickly any possible sightings of Asian hornets, which will help us to halt their spread.
“This invasive species poses a threat to our native honey bees and we must do all we can to encourage vigilance – this new technology will advance this.”
If the Asian hornet is spotted, the Government has protocols for eradicating the species, which were put into action last September, with the nest tracked down and destroyed after hornets were reported.
People are asked to report any sightings quickly, amid fears the pest could reappear this spring.
Asian hornets can be distinguished from native European hornets by their abdomens, which are entirely dark apart from a single band of yellow, in contrast to the mostly yellow abdomens of hornets that are naturally found in the UK.
The native European hornet is an important part of the UK’s wildlife, and queens and nests of this species should not be destroyed, Defra emphasised.
Martin Smith, public affairs manager at the British Beekeepers’ Association, said: “This new app launched today by Defra is a welcome addition to current reporting methods that have enabled beekeepers and members of the public to report possible sightings.
“The key to containment is catching outbreaks as early as possible and allowing fast tracking of the insects back to their nest.
“We will certainly be encouraging all our 25,000 beekeepers to install the app and use it if they see what might be an Asian hornet near their hives.”
Asian hornets arrived in France in 2004 and have spread across large areas of western Europe, turning up for the first time in the British Isles in Jersey and Alderney last summer, before being found in England in September.