Hornet Fact Sheet

​

Infestation Identification:

Hornets have velvety, black or dark brown bodies with an orange or yellow band on the fourth segment of its abdomen. Their legs have yellow tips and they have orange faces. Asian Hornets are smaller than most hornets and queens grown up to 30mm, workers grown up to 25mm.

 

Common Names:

Vespa Velutina (Asian Hornet)

 

Diet:

Adults and larvae feed on insects such as; aphids, caterpillars, flies and spiders. The queen will also feed on sap and fruit.

 

Habitat:

Hornets build paper like nests usually inside where there is easy access from outside, their nests will commonly be found in roofs, wall cavities, loft spaces and window seals. If they build nests outside, they will be found in places such as; dense bushes, hollow trees and sheds.

​

Prevention:

There is no way to prevent wasps completely, however it is advisable to check your property regularly for any small holes in external walls. If you discover any holes, we recommend sealing them to prevent nesting.

 

Life Cycle:

Colonies only live for up to a year and will die once the queen leaves the nest to hibernate. The queen hornet can lay up to 100 eggs per day, these eggs are laid in early Spring after she comes out of hibernation, the eggs then hatch into larvae after only a few days. After the larvae have been fed for approximately 2 weeks, they will then pupate and emerge as adults between 8 and 18 days. Workers live for 30 to 60 days whereas the queen will survive the winter.

 

General Information:

Asian hornets are having an impact on honey bee colonies by killing honey bees, they have an indirect impact on hive health by causing honey bees to spend time protecting the hive against the constant threat of attack and thereby inhibit foraging activities. This decreases the productivity of the honey bee colony, which not only leads to reduced honey and pollen reserves, but also puts at risk the developing brood and the ability of the hive to pollinate.

An Asian Hornet can sting repeatedly and their sting is more painful than a wasp sting because the venom contains a large amount of acetylcholine. Hornets will swarm when they feel threatened, there are many cases of hospitalisations due to the victim suffering from anaphylactic shock.

 

Treatments:

We do not recommend that you approach an Asian Hornets nest because they will feel threatened and become aggressive. Nests are treated using a contact powder, which is inserted into the nest or their access point of the property. The powder will coat the hornets when they enter, when they enter the nest, they will spread this only other hornets and throughout the nest and kill the entire nest. The process usually takes up to 48 hours to fully eradicate a nest. Nests do not need to be removed because they will not cause any problems to your property, they are usually found in wall cavities and places where they are inaccessible.

 

Quick Facts:

• A single hive can contain up to 1500 hornets.

• Repeated stings can cause anaphylactic shock.

• If Asian Hornets feel threatened and become aggressive.

• They are having an impact on honey bee colonies by killing honey bees.

• Adults and larvae feed on insects such as; aphids, caterpillars, flies and spiders.

• An Asian Hornet can sting repeatedly.

• Queens grown up to 30mm, workers grown up to 25mm.

• Their legs have yellow tips and they have orange faces.

• Hornets build paper like nests.

• Colonies only live for up to a year and will die once the queen leaves the nest to hibernate.