Rare honeybee colony lost after officials mistake them for wasps

COUNCIL pest controllers have been criticised after they wiped out more than 150,000 honeybees, having allegedly mistaken them for wasps.

Workers from Isle of Anglesey County Council were called to a swarm of insects in a compost bin outside a home in Llanfechell, Anglesey.

But they reportedly failed to realise that the insects were Welsh black honeybees – which are present in less than 1 per cent of 250,000 hives across the UK – and killed the entire colony.

The authority is now investigating why proper procedures weren’t followed, while local bee-keepers have labelled the incident a “disaster”.

Katie Hayward, a bee-keeper who lives nearby and runs the award-winning Felin Honeybees farm, said: “It was a whole colony wiped out in five minutes.

“I was heartbroken when I saw it, it was absolutely devastating. The Welsh black bee is, as you can probably tell from the name, native to this country.

“Efforts are under way to try and increase their population so, from a bee-keeper’s point of view, it’s incredibly sad and very frustrating to see so many of them being unnecessarily killed.

“On more than one occasion I have spoken to pest control staff at the council and told them I’d be more than willing to help them.”

In Britain, southern European honeybees filled the void after the native honeybee was practically wiped out by a virus 100 years ago.

The Welsh black bee is almost completely black and is the last survivor of the original British bee.

Black bees are darker and boast thicker, longer hair and a larger body than the golden-coloured, southern European bee, which allows them to keep warm in cooler climates and to be more adaptable to British weather.

The Bee Improvement and Bee Breeders’ Association began a project to conserve the last remaining black bees in 1997.

An Isle of Anglesey County Council spokesman said: “We work closely with local bee-keepers in order to provide residents with options for dealing with honeybees.

“Normally, if an operator arrives on site and discovers that honeybees are present, they will advise the home owner to contact a bee-keeper to assist.

“It appears that our usual procedure was not followed in this instance, and we will therefore be investigating the matter further.”