Asian hornets.

Deleted by self.

 

the thing I find strange is if this is prevalent in Europe they think they can stop it crossing the channel, they will fail miserably.
They do most of the time.

 

So what I dont understand is, in parts of the world where this comes from I presume they have no pollinators or bees left.
We often get told to look for strange ladybirds etc, but TBH in this global world we live in, its just pointless, these things will move and we cant do much to stop it really.

 

The first line of defence with the Asian hornets (or the native ones for that matter) is to get traps up early in Spring to catch the queens looking to establish nests. The trusty pop bottle traps are very effective and don't cost much to make. I've found the best bait to be a mix of very cheap wine and mouldy jam..both in abundant supply here Despite what the more hysterical ecolos say, the traps do not attract bees....just hornets, wasps and flies. Then at night, there's the workshop lamp suspended over a container of diesel but you need electricity close by for that.
ETA: Most towns and villages in rural France will help with the destruction of nests when they're reported. Some help financially too.