An unwelcome buzz

There is a silent invasion happening all around us in the Lowcountry, wreaking havoc on the vulnerable creatures in our community that help make our flowers bloom and our crops grow. Scientists believe these insidious serial killers of the vespine world first snuck to our shores aboard a cargo ship bound for the Savannah port and were soon spotted swarming in the Hostess City in 2023.

And now, the yellow legged hornet has arrived in our corner of the South. A fierce predator to honeybees, these hornets will camp out in front of entrances to hives, waiting for bees to return laden down with pollen. That’s when they strike, dismembering the honeybee and leaving only the thorax, which they feed to their young.

“These are not your typical hornets. They have a whole set of specialized gear specialized for killing bees,” said Erin Carpenter, Master Gardener at The Greenery Garden Center. “And what’s really troubling is that the number of nests that are out there has doubled since they arrived because of the way they spread.”

This spread is of particular concern given the compounding crises currently facing honeybees in our region, including pesticide-resistant Varroa mites, destructive small hive beetles, climate-driven drought and shifting weather patterns.

“They’re kind of scary right now, because they’re reducing the bee population. And they’ve gone from just being found in Savannah to spread all the way up to Charlotte,” added Carpenter. “I just heard that they’ve removed 700 nests from Beaufort County this year.”

This hit home to Blufftonians this past September, when the Church of the Cross’ famous honeybees were removed out of an abundance of caution before the yellow legged hornets could strike. Battling this invasive species is an all-hands-on deck effort, and citizens of Beaufort County are being urged to get involved.

The Greenery is doing their own part in these efforts, hosting a seminar on October 24 to provide crucial information on identifying, reporting and ultimately removing these invasive hornets from the Lowcountry. Featuring a talk by Allison Lewis, Invasive Hornet Survey Specialist with Clemson University’s Department of Plant Industry, along with her team and local beekeepers and members of The Greenery’s team, will give attendees resources and guidance for reporting sightings.

“They are going to bring everything you need to be able to identify these hornets, and all the information you need to report it so we can move them safely. The more people we have out there looking for nests, the better. That’s really what our goal is,” said Carpenter.

And for most of us, identifying and reporting is the best we can do. It may be tempting to remove the nest yourself, but Carpenter urges people to leave it to the professionals.

“They’re pretty docile. They’re not just going to fly up to you and sting you like normal hornets would, but they’re obviously not going to be too happy about that.”

So that just leaves those of us in the public the crucial job of serving as the eyes and ears of efforts to eradicate this invasive threat. And that requires education. Completely free and open to the public, “Invasive Hornets in the Lowcountry” will be held on Saturday, October 24, at 10 a.m. at The Greenery Garden Center, 960 William Hilton Parkway, Hilton Head Island.

A 20-year Bluffton resident, Barry Kaufman is a freelance writer and editor as well as host of B-Town Trivia. Follow him on Instagram @btownbarry and @btowntrivia