A HUGE Asian hornet nest has been found in toilets at the former Tamba Park activity centre – just as it was about to emit queens which could have gone on to form new colonies next year.
The nest was discovered by volunteer hornet hunter Jane Osborne when she entered the toilets while searching for the invasive insects near the St Lawrence site.
Describing the discovery, fellow hunter John de Carteret said: ‘When we arrived this was a very busy nest with a constant stream of Asian hornets arriving back with “prey parcels” to feed the larvae inside, and about to emit large numbers of new season queens, ready to mate, hibernate and emerge in spring 2023 to populate this area and beyond.
‘Unfortunately for this nest, but fortunately for us, they didn’t allow for Jane Osborne’s skill and tenacity in tracking this nest down, nor of others in the small group of volunteers doing the same right across the Island right now, in a last ditch attempt to find all their nests before the hundreds of queens that we know they will produce disperse into our beautiful Jersey countryside.
‘So if you want to carry on enjoying those carefree walks…please report any sightings to asianhornet@gov.je or better still become a volunteer yourself, just a couple of hours would be helpful.’
More than 150 nests have been discovered during what has been a record-breaking season for the volunteers.
