Vespa velutina spreading from 2 nests to 10'642 in just 4 years in Northern Spain

Spreading Fast From 2 nests to 10'642 in 4 years

The Vespa velutina was first detected in Galicia (Northern Spain) in 2012, in two areas: Burela (province of Lugo) and     O Rosal (province of Pontevedra). Both nests were destroyed.
The distance between Burela and O Rosal is 226km. The next year, in 2013 a total of 17 Vespa velutina nests were destroyed in Galicia.
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​Figure 1. Map of Galicia, showing the two districts where Vespa velutina was first detected in 2012.

Using data taken from the Galician government this table shows the total number of Vespa velutina nests eliminated (and retired) and neutralized (not retired)

Year        Total          Eliminated       Neutralized       
2014        769               727                      42
2015        5022            4176                    846
2016        10642           9208                 1434 ​
*Please note* These figures do not show the true situation, many nests have also been destroyed by beekeepers and private enterprises and have not been reported. Xesús will be compiling these figures and publishing the data when complete.

The following maps show the districts in Galicia Northern Spain where Vespa velutina nests were detected for 2014, 2015 and 2016.

Figure 3a  (2014)

Figure 3b  (2015)

Figure 3c  (2016)

As you can see, the last data released on approx. 8th august by Galician government (figure 4), shows an overall increase on the number of detected nests. It will be necessary to wait for the data at the end of the year for comparison purposes, but the present information clearly indicates to us that the Vespa velutina continues to spread without contention.

Figure 4. Map of Galicia, showing Vespa velutina nests detected as of 8th august 2017.

​Galicia (Figure 1) Is located in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula, and has a population of 2,718,525 with a total area of 29,574 km2 (11,419 sq mi). Galicia has over 1,660 km (1,030 mi) of coastline, including its off shore islands, among them are: Cíes Islands, Ons, Sálvora, Cortegada and A Illa de Arousa. Galicia comprises the provinces of A Coruña (n= 93 districts), Lugo (n=67 districts), Ourense (n=92 districts) and Pontevedra (n=62 districts), being bordered by Portugal to the south, Spain to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and the Cantabrian Sea to the north.

Figure 5. Map of Europe where Galicia is highlighted, showing the Provinces of: ​A Coruña (1), Lugo (2), Ourense (3) and Pontevedra (4).

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