Thirty-five queens and seven primary nests were spotted between the begining of the year and last weekend. This compares to 50 queens and 12 nests during the same period last year.
‘Numbers are steadily going up and will rise but they are significantly less than last year. We don’t know why numbers are down, but on the face of it it’s good news so early in the season,’ said Alastair Christie, the Island’s Asian hornet co-ordinator.
However, the hot spots remain the same, with clusters of hornet activity mainly found in St Martin and St Brelade.
‘We believe the proximity to France and easterly winds blow them across to St Martin. St Brelade is less understood, but it’s definitely a hot spot. There’s only been a smattering in St Lawrence and St Clement, but so far nothing in St Ouen and St John and the other parishes.’
And while the Asian hornet-hunting activity has been greatly curtailed during lockdown, it has not had a noticeable impact on the monitoring or control of the invasive insect.
‘The volunteers and myself were stood down in April but members of the public have been getting out more into the countryside and also into their gardens.
‘In some ways the lockdown has done us a favour,’ said Mr Christie.
‘People have reported sightings, and they’re being absolutely amazing – and that continues,’ he added. ‘If you do see a nest, please report it but never deal with it yourself.
‘If you find a hornet in your house, it will be a queen, so try and catch it and keep it in a jar and get in touch with us.’
Mr Christie outlined what to look for if people do think they have found a nest.
‘We’re still asking people to check their properties for nests, in particular if they’ve got a car port, lean-to, a barn or storage shed – go into it and look in the rafters and roof area. We had a primary nest spotted in Ouaisné on Sunday which was an absolutely perfect example.
‘The nest will be about the size of a tennis ball, pale creamy beige in colour, round in shape and has a 1cm hole at the bottom of it.
‘It will only have a single queen with it and she will fly backwards and forwards building the nest and taking in food. They’ve got a broad diet but it’s protein that’s needed, so it will be insects like flies, moths and honey bees – unfortunately, about 70% will be honey bees.’
For more information on Asian hornets or to make a report visit asianhornet@gov.je, or call 441633. The ‘Asian-Hornet Watch’ app can also be used to report sightings and is available through the Android and Apple app stores.
