The Canton of Vaud is intensifying its fight against the Asian hornet. He calls on a specialist and civil protection to limit the proliferation of the insect on the cantonal territory. New tracking techniques have been tested and some 80 nests have been destroyed since this summer, he said on Friday.
“In order to gain momentum in the fight against the Asian hornet, the Vaud Civil Protection (PCi) was engaged this summer to support the teams in the search for nests under the leadership of Daniel Cherix, honorary professor of the University of Lausanne (UNIL), mandated by the General Directorate of the Environment (DGE) This collaboration is a first in Switzerland in the fight against this invasive species,” writes the Canton.
After receiving training and carrying out scouting, members of the PCi intervened in August in the Prangins/Nyon sector, in September in the Mies/Tannay and Gland sector, then in Cheseaux-Noréaz. Two night drone flights for a thermal reconnaissance test of nests were also held at the end of August and mid-September. In total, 35 members of the PCi were involved in these various operations, it is detailed in a press release.
Daniel Cherix, a biologist who works with the Canton, was delighted with this collaboration. “She was very easy (…) It was great to work with them (…) We discovered a certain number of nests thanks to them,” he declared on La Matinale on Saturday.
Flea-equipped hornets
A new nest identification technique, made available by HEIG-VD and co-financed by the Nyon Region, was tested for the first time in the Gland sector. A certain number of hornets have been equipped with chips, in order to carry out surveys to more precisely identify the location of the nests.
Professor Cherix’s teams of volunteer beekeepers then proceeded to destroy the nests, identified with the help of trained specialists. Some 80 nests have been destroyed since the start of the year.
“This detection and destruction work contributes to the preservation of the local ecosystem and the limitation of the proliferation of invasive exotic species on the cantonal territory,” further explains the Canton.
Invasive species
Coming from Asia, the Asian hornet is a very invasive species, capable of reproducing very quickly, which attacks orchards and bees, impacting local biodiversity and the agricultural economy. It can represent a risk for people suffering from allergies or disturbing a nest.
Coming from France, the Asian hornet reached Switzerland in 2017. It first spread gradually then accelerated during the 2023 beekeeping season along the Jura Arc and in French-speaking Switzerland. There were four nests in the canton of Vaud in 2022, 40 in 2023 and around a hundred this year, while the Asian hornet season has not yet come to an end, according to the DGE.
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