Arriving in France thanks to a shipment of pottery landed in Lot-et-Garonne in 2004, these hymenopteran insects are now greatly disrupting biodiversity.
How to recognize an Asian hornet nest?
Also called yellow-legged hornets, these insects are identifiable by
their spherical nest
with a small side entrance.
Made of gray papier-mâché, it can reach 1 m high and 0.80 m in diameter. It is often installed in full light and carried out in two stages. Between February and August, a primary nest, the size of an orange, is installed less than 3 m from the ground. Secondly, a secondary nest is created, installed higher up, in order to accommodate all the members of the colony.
Conversely, the European hornet's nest is conical in shape and has a large opening at its base. It tends to be built in dark places. The honeycomb, called a hive, is very different from the hornet's nest. Generally orange in color, it has wax rays with cells. Concerning
Vespa veluna
,
the insect measures 2 to 3 cm long
, its body is black and has an orange ring and a yellow border on the abdomen. The tips of its legs are also yellow.
Made of gray papier-mâché, the Asian hornet's nest can reach 1 m high and 0.80 m in diameter. Copyright (c) 2023 Stephen Farhall/Shutterstock. No use without permission.
Why shouldn't you kill an Asian hornet?
It is completely inadvisable to kill an Asian hornet because signals emitted by the threatened hornet are then transmitted to its colony which may
decide to attack.
More specifically, if a hornet is crushed near its nest, the pheromones released from its body can alert its fellow hornets.
Is it obligatory to destroy an Asian hornet nest?
No, it is not
mandatory to destroy
Asian hornet nests. But it all depends on where they are located. Only when they represent a threat should they be eliminated, namely if they are less than 10 m from homes, schools or places of leisure. In addition, only active nests must be destroyed: in winter, the hornets die and the founding queen hibernates. So there is no danger.
Also read: Honeycomb: what to do when bees make their nest in your home?
Who to contact to get rid of an Asian hornet nest?
On public property, you must contact the town hall, which will call the firefighters if the nest is located in a sensitive area such as a school, a nursery, a leisure center, etc. Copyright (c) 2023 josefotograf/Shutterstock. No use without permission.
In a private place, it is up to the owner or tenant of the premises to request a pest control service if the proximity of the nest constitutes a threat. On public property, you must
contact the town hall
, which will call the firefighters if the nest is located in a sensitive area such as a school, a nursery, a leisure center, etc. The firefighters also intervene if the nest is difficult to access. The town hall may request a private service provider in all other situations where the nest is installed on a public road.
Who pays for the destruction of an Asian hornet nest?
If it is a private place, the destruction costs are
the responsibility of the owner
or shared between the owner and the tenant, if the nest appeared after signing the lease. The owner pays for the labor and the tenant for the products used. Some town halls help finance the destruction on a private place. If the nest is located in the common areas of a building, it is up to the co-ownership trustee to pay. In terms of price, allow €80 to €200 for the service depending on the difficulty of accessing the nest.
When is the best time to remove an Asian hornet nest?
Autumn
is the ideal time to destroy the nest because it is the time when the future queen is fertilized: it is crucial to act before she leaves the nest to hibernate. This is also the season when the nests are more easily observed with the falling leaves.
However, if you have let this period pass, don't panic!
In late winter and early spring
, founding queens begin to become active after the hibernation period. They then look for places to establish new nests and are still vulnerable. This is therefore the ideal time to trap them (many homemade traps are very effective) and thus prevent them from building their nests.