Affected hosts
- Apis mellifera
- Apis cerana
Vespa velutina nigrithorax
Asian hornet
Invasive predator that captures bees at the hive entrance, suppresses foraging, and can contribute to colony weakening or losses.
Agent
Vespa velutina nigrithorax
Notifiable in Portugal
Yes
Signs to watch for
Adult bees
- Hornets hovering in front of hive entrances
- Bees reluctant to leave
- Reduced foraging
- Attacks on weak colonies
Brood
- Worker predation
- Reduced bee flight
- Reserve depletion when foraging stops
- Pressure on weak colonies
Colony
- Nearby nests
- Weak colonies
- Wide entrances
- High hive density
- Floral scarcity
Confirmation and identification
Field observation and monitoring
- Mostly dark body
- Yellow leg tips
- Orange face
- Distinct orange band on the abdomen
- Timed counts at the hive entrance
- Record periods of pressure
- Check official sighting records
Laboratory methods
- Confirm identification before taking any action.
Control and impact reduction
Good practices
- Record the level of pressure
- Apply safe physical protection
- Use the official reporting system
- Nest location and neutralization by qualified teams
Prevention
- Keep colonies strong
- Reduce entrances without compromising ventilation
- Use selective, validated barriers
- Avoid exposed honey, wax, or residues
- Report nests
- Destroying nests without training
- Shooting at nests
- Using poisons
- Long-term indiscriminate trapping
Ongoing monitoring
Indicators
- Hornets per minute
- Affected hives
- Reduced foraging
- Distance to a known nest
Recommended frequency
- Highest pressure usually occurs from late summer into autumn as hornet colonies expand.