Home HomeSwedenLivingWorld world_2_fill WorldBusiness BusinessSports sports-soccer SportsEntertainmentEntertain

Invasive wasp worries beekeepers

It eats honeybees and awakens concern among beekeepers. It is only a matter of time before the invasive velvet ant establishes itself in Sweden, according to experts.

» Updated: 25 August 2024, 16:57

» Published: 25 June 2024

Invasive wasp worries beekeepers
Photo: Henrik Montgomery/TT

It eats honey bees and causes concern among beekeepers. It is only a matter of time before the invasive velvet bee establishes itself in Sweden, according to experts.

The velvet bee poses a threat to bee colonies and biological diversity in Europe. Over the past 20 years, the species has established itself in most of Western Europe, including France and Germany.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the risk is high that the velvet bee will establish itself in Sweden.

At the initiative of the industry organisation Beekeepers, a working group has been set up with the task of planning measures and disseminating information about the velvet bee in collaboration with other authorities. Johanna Adolfsson is the coordinator and, according to her, the work can be crucial for Swedish beekeepers.

In France, the velvet bee is responsible for 20 per cent of all bee colony deaths, she says.

Southern Sweden in the risk zone

The invasive velvet bee can travel and establish itself in Sweden through transport, wind or its natural spread of between six to eight miles per year. The working group is also in contact with Denmark in case the bee travels there.

Due to a warmer climate in southern Sweden, it is most likely that the species will establish itself there.

But the velvet bee can also be transported with boats and vehicles to other harbours in Sweden, says Adolfsson.

It is the right conditions for mating and hibernation that are the key to its survival until next year.

Threat to honey

In the long run, an establishment would not only pose a threat to biological diversity but also to Swedish honey production. The velvet bee feeds on bees that produce honey.

A nest with velvet bees eats around eleven kilos of protein per season, which corresponds to around 100,000 insects, says Johanna Adolfsson.

The velvet bee stresses the bees and they dare not fly out. It hunts almost all day in front of the hive.

When the invasive species can establish itself in Sweden is unknown, according to Adolfsson. The most important thing for beekeepers is to keep themselves updated and informed.

Beekeepers need to educate themselves in the velvet bee's life cycle to know how to combat it.

The bee has a black thorax and on the abdomen, which is dark in colour, there is an orange band. The bee's legs and feet are yellow. The head is black, the antennae are dark, and the forehead of the bee is yellow-brown.

The queen can grow up to 30 millimetres and workers can grow up to 25 millimetres.

Source: Environmental Protection Agency

Tags
TTT
By TTThis article has been altered and translated by Sweden Herald

More news

Woman secretly filmed the elderly – prosecuted
1 MIN READ

Woman secretly filmed the elderly – prosecuted

Woman Assaulted – Police Investigate Rape
1 MIN READ

Woman Assaulted – Police Investigate Rape

Norwegian Police: We Have Stopped Swedish Criminality
1 MIN READ

Norwegian Police: We Have Stopped Swedish Criminality

Unique finds at a Scanian sacrificial site from the Stone Age
1 MIN READ

Unique finds at a Scanian sacrificial site from the Stone Age

Three seriously injured after crashing into a tree
1 MIN READ

Three seriously injured after crashing into a tree

Boy guilty of attacks linked to online sect
2 MIN READ

Boy guilty of attacks linked to online sect

The Renmark Committee is Dissolved Following Criticism
1 MIN READ

The Renmark Committee is Dissolved Following Criticism

Kristersson skips the climate summit
1 MIN READ

Kristersson skips the climate summit

Audit: Kinberg Batra's severance package not incorrect
1 MIN READ

Audit: Kinberg Batra's severance package not incorrect

Man Dead – Crushed Under Work Machine
1 MIN READ

Man Dead – Crushed Under Work Machine

Deadly Synthetic Opioids Classified as Narcotics
2 MIN READ

Deadly Synthetic Opioids Classified as Narcotics

Dropped investigation against Jomshof for hate crime
1 MIN READ

Dropped investigation against Jomshof for hate crime

The Government Extends Border Control
1 MIN READ

The Government Extends Border Control

Swedes arrested for terrorist crimes in Copenhagen
2 MIN READ

Swedes arrested for terrorist crimes in Copenhagen

Two students stabbed at school in Hallsberg
2 MIN READ

Two students stabbed at school in Hallsberg

Unannounced visits, a new weapon against benefit fraud
2 MIN READ

Unannounced visits, a new weapon against benefit fraud

16-year-old convicted of murder plan in Denmark
2 MIN READ

16-year-old convicted of murder plan in Denmark

Social Democrats' demands on Kristersson: EU plan for Ukraine support
2 MIN READ

Social Democrats' demands on Kristersson: EU plan for Ukraine support

Suspects Released After School Operation
1 MIN READ

Suspects Released After School Operation

The Verdict: Cannabis in the Blood of Pastry Poisoning Victims
1 MIN READ

The Verdict: Cannabis in the Blood of Pastry Poisoning Victims