The yellow-legged hornet, considered a serious threat to honey bees, appeared in Poland. The presence of a dangerous visitor from Asia was confirmed in the large Village close Krakow and in the apiary of the AGH University in Krakow. Experts inform that this can only be the beginning of the problem: large nests of these insects can number more than a 1000 individuals.
The species which has spread in Europe since 2004 has reached Poland. In the large Village, an full nest of these insects was found, while in the AGH apiary – individuals. Why is the Asian hornet specified a large problem? It is primarily about his menu: the hornet of yellow-legged preys primarily on pollinating insects, including honey bees. It can attack them straight at the inlet to the hives, effectively making it hard for them to fly out for food, making full bee families able to weaken and even die.
Experts inform that bees do not cope with the invasion of hornets, which is already a immense problem in Western Europe. Currently, the most effective method of population simplification is to destruct nests. Due to their location and aggressiveness, however, the task requires specialized equipment and experience.
How do you admit yellow - leged hornet? The species is distinguished primarily by yellow tips of legs, dark torsos and abdomen with a yellow orange belt. The individuals caught for investigating were about 2.5 cm long. Experts call for suspicious observations to be reported, among others, to the Regional Environment Directorates. Photos and recordings made available on iNaturalist can besides be helpful. At the same time, they respond to panic: insects should not be killed simply due to the fact that they match hornets, due to the fact that misidentification can lead to unnecessary demolition of native species.
