“SEVERAL” Asian ‘killer’ hornets have now been caught since they were first sighted in the UK in the Tetbury area.

The Asian hornet (Vespa velutina), which threatens bee hives, was found by a beekeeper in around the Tetbury area in mid September.

A 20km incident zone was imposed by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) and the National Bee Unit (NBU) is locating the nest so it can be destroyed.

Now, “several” of the killer hornets have been caught and had their genetics examined by the NBU, according to the British Beekeepers Association on Friday, September 23.

According to Tetbury Town Council, at least five of the hornets have been caught and traps have been placed around Northfield Road in Tetbury.

Bee experts have been seen around the bottom of Northfield Road overlooking Cookspool.

The town council have however said that there have not been any reports of sickness yet.

Tetbury Councillor Colin Pearce said: “We need to destroy the hornets because they destroy beehives. Without bees, the whole ethos of this country will be destroyed because you don’t get any pollen.

“Bees are everything. They do the pollination. You could get no flowers, no corn, no grain. It could damage the country. If there is no pollination, there is no growth.”

Deputy mayor Cllr Kevin Painter said: “We would remind you to be very vigilant because the hornets do sting and can be quite nasty. We need to be vigilant until we get the all clear.”

An update by the NBU received by the British Beekeepers Association on Wednesday, September 28, wrote: "Following the finding of Asian hornets in Gloucestershire last week we have received a large number of suspect Asian hornet reports from members of the public and beekeepers which we are following up.

"Bee inspectors have now visited over 100 sites. Asian hornets have been seen at just six locations within 500 meters of the original site.

"Efforts to track down the nest and destroy it are ongoing.

"There have been no other substantiated reports of hornets anywhere else in the UK so please be patient while we continue our field work.

"At this time of the year, the best bait to use in traps is fish bait diluted to 25 per cent."

According to Defra, the hornets caught in the Tetbury area appear to be related to those in France. This means that they are breeding from a small genetic pool and may have been weakened from in-breeding.

The Asian hornet arrived in France in 2004 and is now common across large areas of Europe.

It was discovered for the first time in Jersey and Alderney this summer.

It is believed the species will not be able survive in the north of the UK due to colder winters.

The Asian hornet is a serious pest of honey bees. If they gain access to a colony, they will summon the rest of their nest mates and the colony will be overcome very quickly.

European bees currently have no natural defences.

The Asian hornet is smaller than the UK’s native hornet. It has yellow legs, a dark velvety thorax and a dark abdomen with a distinctive yellow band on the fourth segment.

Defra and NBU are encouraging beekeepers to register on BeeBase (www.nationalbeeunit.com) or to update their entries to ensure all their apiaries are included.

An identification sheet can be found at: secure.fera.defra.gov.uk/nonnativespecies/downloadDocument.cfm?id=872 or www.nationalbeeunit.com/index.cfm?pageId=208.

Any sightings should be reported to: alertnonnative@ceh.ac.uk.