Category: Yellow-legged Asian Hornet

Andrew Durham of Cambridgeshire Beekeeping Association gives an appraisal of efforts made in Europe and the UK on dealing with the Yellow-Legged Hornet. The session was hosted by the British Beekeepers Association on Wednesday 3rd September 2025; a recording can be accessed here.

This update from Peter Davies, Operational Delivery Lead at the National Bee Unit, was hosted by the British Beekeepers Association on Tuesday 2nd September 2025. A recording of the session can be found here.

The following are the key points:

• Eradication phase continues.
• 343 credible sightings (out of 13,000 reports)
• 87 nests confirmed (majority destroyed, rest in progress)
• Trial of micro-transmitters fitted to hornets – nests found in less than an hour
• Beekeeping association Asian Hornet Teams (AHTs) provide useful support
• We need to continue vigilance, awareness, identification, reporting.

Monitoring

• NBU advice is that, in areas that are not at high or medium risk of YLH presence (like Beds), do not use kill traps as they have big impact on by-catch.
• Preferably, use open monitoring i.e wick stations.
• Selective traps that have no/limited by-catch (e.g. Gard’Apis or VespaCatch with 6.5mm escape holes) are OK if properly used and monitored.
• Monitoring need varies with season and local risk level (proximity to any previous years’ nests); so selective and killing traps are  ideally to be used only near areas where there are confirmed sightings.
• NBU guidance on monitoring can be found here.
• More information on the YLH can be found here.

Nigel Semmence from the National Bee Unit (NBU) gave an update on the yellow-legged Asian hornet (YLH) situation on Tuesday 11th March.

The following are the key points:

2024

• 24 nests destroyed – South East England.
• First evidence of overwintering/breeding in UK.
• 29,611 reports but only 71 confirmed – 0.2%. We need to continue to educate the public on how to identify the YLH.

2025

• Eradication phase continues.
• 1 confirmed single hornet – January – Oswestry, Shropshire.
• Spring YLH queen surveillance has been approved for the NBU – they are monitoring 5 km zones around 7 high risk points identifiied in Kent/E. Sussex.
• We need to continue vigilance, awareness, identification, reporting.

Monitoring

• NBU advice is that, in areas that are not at high or medium risk of YLH presence (like Beds), do not use kill traps as they have big impact on by-catch.
• Preferably, use open monitoring i.e wick stations.
• Selective traps that have no/limited by-catch (e.g. Gard’Apis or VespaCatch with 6.5mm escape holes) are OK if properly used and monitored.
• Monitoring need varies with season and local risk level (proximity to any previous years’ nests); so selective and killing traps are  ideally to be used only near areas where there are confirmed sightings.
• NBU guidance on monitoring can be found here.

Nigel Semmence of the National Bee Unit presents the latest information (recorded at the National Honey Show at the end of October 2024). Nigel explains the UK strategy as well as results.

Click here to accept Marketing cookies and load this content

This week has been designated by the British Beekeepers Association (BBKA) as Asian Hornet Week. The intention is to increase public awareness of the threat that this voracious insect poses to our pollinators and, in particular, to encourage accurate identification and reporting. By end of July 2024, over 22,000 reported sightings were incorrect and only about 60% of sighting reports included a photo which is vital for confirmation.

To that end, the BBKA have provided the following which we encourage beekeepers and members of the public to read and to help distribute:

• An Asian hornet fact sheet
• An Asian hornet look-a-likes sheet – to avoid incorrect identification and reporting
• An Asian hornet press release

Nigel Semmence, Contingency Planning and Science Officer, Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA)/National Bee Unit (NBU) presents a special update on yellow-legged Asian hornets.

See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3dYuz9oeSg