Alastair Christie, who leads the team tracking the invasive species in Jersey, said that the number of queens found so far this year had risen from nine to 27 in the past week – with the first nest expected ‘any day
now’.
In today’s (29 March) nature column on page 16, Bob Tompkins, who is also a member of the hornet-tracking team, warned that large numbers of newly mated hornet queens could potentially have been ‘missed’ last year in areas on the French coast, and are now being blown over to Jersey on the wind.
Mr Christie said that around 75% of the emerging hornet queens had been discovered in the east of the Island, with 11 being caught by traps and the remaining 16 reported by members of the public.
He said: ‘We felt, based on evidence, that we had done an excellent job of mopping up the hornet nests in Jersey.
‘We have had three weeks of easterly winds and we feel that the majority of queens that we have
found so far are blow-ins from France.’
He added that it was unclear how many hornets were being missed, but that the team would have a better picture once the tracking phase begins with the emergence of ‘worker’ hornets in the summer.
‘I remain optimistic but these easterly winds and lots of hornets from France don’t help one bit,’ said Mr Christie.
Islanders are being encouraged to keep a look out for Asian hornets and their nests, and can report a sighting by emailing asianhornet@gov.je, attaching a photo if possible. Mr Christie can also be contacted on 441633.
