wreaking havoc along their way, invasive species have a notorious ability to spread quickly.
The Asian hornet expands its habitat by more than 50 miles a year while preying on insects.
The'murder hornets' made their debut in Europe nearly two decades ago, and were spotted on the UK soil in the summer of 2016
Their rapid and widespread invasion across the west was most likely the result of one wasp jumping to France from China in 2004, according to genetic analysis.
The potential for population expansion of insects in invaded areas has been revealed by research.
The first recorded arrival of the Asian hornet in Ireland in April 2021 was analyzed by Eileen and her team at University College Cork. Mitochondrial genes are passed on from one generation to the next.
Studies of a single gene have shown that Asian hornets in Europe share the same genetics. We looked at two more genes which would be more sensitive in detecting variation in the population.
The wasp line found in Dublin was the same as the one found in all of Europe.
The team believes that the entire population of V. velutina in Europe is descended from a single queen arriving from China 15 years ago.
The Asian hornet preys on Asian honeybees that have a complex warning and prey defense system. An attacking wasp will be mobbed in a bee ball. European honeybees are easy targets for the was due to their lack of defensive behaviors.
The Asian wasp has a sting that some people can have allergic reactions to, but they are not aggressive towards humans.
The European population of V. velutina has a very low genetic diversity.
Climate change is likely to increase the threat of a successful invasion in the future so vigilance against this species must be maintained.
The journal of hymenoptera published their research.
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