Sat, Nov 4th 2023
An Asian hornet was spotted near Torgon VS at the end of October. This is the first time that this introduced invasive species has been detected in Valais. The canton is now preparing measures to protect the bee colonies.
The Asian hornet eats bees and other insects and thus damages beekeeping, agriculture and biodiversity, as the Valais Department of Agriculture recalled on Friday. The invasive species has been spreading since 2017, initially slowly from France and then rapidly during the 2023 bee season along the Jura Arc and in western Switzerland.
Following reports of findings in the canton of Vaud, the emergence of the pest in Valais was expected and a task force has already been set up to combat the spread of the species. The first task is to find out whether the observation in Torgon is a single, stray individual or whether there is a previously undiscovered nest in the vicinity. The aim of the control measures is to find and destroy the Asian hornet’s nests.
©Keystone/SDA
English 
German 
French 
Spanish 
Arabic