Asian hornet decapitating a honeybee

Earlier this month, Bejamin Poirot of Apinov (Vita’s partner in France) had been telling me that Asian hornets were making their presence felt early this year.

On a visit to his test apiary in La Rochelle, western France, it wasn’t long before we saw Asian hornets predating the bees. They weren’t causing big losses (yet), but we were able to follow one as it landed on the apiary netting to consume its catch.

Benjamin explains what is happening: « The Asian hornet is trying to cut the abdomen from the head of the bee. Only the thorax is consumed by the hornet. »