Gloucestershire Asian Hornet Action Team (AHAT)
It is assumed that the Asian hornet (Vespa velutina) will again appear in Gloucestershire. The role of the county AHAT is to coordinate the efforts to share any reports and confirm any Asian hornet sightings including the collection of photographs or samples.
Cheltenham Gloucester and Tewkesbury
Cirencester
Dean Forest
Newent
North Cotswolds
Stroud
South Gloucestershire
Howard Silvanus-Davis
Denis Flavel
Graham Pugh
Tony Capener
Sarah Foulkes
Peter Lead
Colin Swaine
European hornet and Asian hornet side by side
Once the National Bee Unit (NBU) of DEFRA has been informed, they will then take charge of the operation to find and destroy the nest. Under their direction AHATs may be invited to help find it.
The Asian hornet has significant differences. The abdomen is more black with few yellow stripes. It is slightly smaller in size. It has yellow legs and is sometimes referred to as “The yellow legged hornet”.
Try and spot the Asian hornets in the image in the link below.
For more help identifying the invasive species see the excellent BBKA Asian hornet pages.