The Asian hornet’s alarm: “Devours our bees”
The species has no predators in Italy and besieges the beehives. An adult individual had been found in the Cavoretto area. A few weeks later, to be precise on November 7, an even worse discovery was made: a nest, still in the hills of Turin.
This is a very dangerous signal for beekeepers and also for the environment. The development of this insect is due to the warmer temperatures, explained by Aspromiele, because due to its characteristics it is suitable for the hotter climate of some Asian areas, but climate change also affects this. Often, to hunt, the wasps literally besiege the beehives, preventing the bees from going out and feeding.
Pollinating insects have great difficulty in defending themselves from this predator, unlike what happens with the hornet crabro. If the elimination of the Turin nest was achieved thanks to a coordination of different entities (Aspromiele, Unaappi, Disafa of the University of Turin, Capt, Piedmont Region and Asl), it is not always easy to identify the Asian hornet. Aspromiele has spread some prevention tips, such as instructions for building traps and retrieval methods.
The attention remains high and in the nearby Liguria, a search system is being patented. It arrives every day directly in your inbox at 7 in the morning.