"The possible arrival of invasive hornets in the Canary Islands and their establishment in the archipelago is only a matter of time if prevention, surveillance, and early response measures are not reinforced." This warning introduces the Guide to Preliminary Notions on Potential Invasive Hornets in the Canary Islands, published by the Association for the Development of Comprehensive Climate Actions (ADACIS), within the framework of the APICLIMPACT project: Assessment of the Canary Islands Apicultural Sector in the Face of Climate Change.
The Guide constitutes a practical, visual, and accessible tool to promote progress in the prevention and response to this threat to the islands, because experience in regions where the species has already established itself - especially in the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands - demonstrates that improvisation generates high economic costs, puts public health at risk, and hinders the containment of its impact on biodiversity and, in particular, on beekeeping.
The APICLIMPACT Project, financed with Next Generation funds from the European Union, was approved in October 2023 by the Ministry of Ecological Transition and Energy of the Government of the Canary Islands, in the "Call for Subsidies for the Financing of Actions in Biosphere Reserves", and is part of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (PRTR) of the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge of the Government of Spain.
Its objective is to evaluate the situation of the Canary Island beekeeping sector, propose agreed-upon solutions to its potential threats, and guarantee its maximum resilience in the face of the impacts of climate change. Within this framework, the publication of this Guide seeks to facilitate a rapid and effective response to avoid the potential expansion of these insects, which would be favored by the current tropicalization process suffered by the Canary Island climate. The Guide is aimed at a wide spectrum of users, including health professionals, environmental management, police forces, Guardia Civil, emergency services, beekeepers, farmers, public administrations, and the general population, and has already begun to be sent to all entities involved in both prevention and action in the event that the presence of invasive hornets is detected in the islands.
These insects are classified in the Canary Islands context as an "Exotic species with invasive potential," representing a double threat. On the one hand, they generate an ecological impact, being major predators of bees and other pollinating insects, causing serious damage to beekeeping and biodiversity. On the other hand, they have an impact on public health, since their stings can cause severe and even fatal allergic reactions in sensitive people, which requires frequent interventions by security forces and emergency services.
The Guide highlights the vulnerability of the island territory, since, despite the geographic isolation, the high volume of air and sea traffic of passengers and goods is a serious potential vector for the entry of these insects. This threat is critical given the exceptional biological richness of the Canary Islands, which is home to 140 wild bee species - 50 of them endemic - essential for the maintenance and pollination of the islands' flora. Added to these is the Black Canary Bee, the only native honey-producing breed, present in more than 95% of the archipelago's hives.
Sentinels of the Territory
In this risk scenario, the Guide underscores the fundamental role played by beekeepers as "sentinels of the territory." It also promotes active collaboration with organizations such as the Canary Islands Early Warning Network for Invasive Alien Species (RedEXOS), with which ADACIS has worked to validate the content of this Guide. The coordination, writing, and content were the responsibility of the ADACIS technical team and Xesús Feás Sánchez, an expert in entomology and beekeeping. ADACIS is developing the APICLIMPACT Project in close cooperation with a broad network of collaborators in the islands, including the seven Biosphere Reserves of the Canary Islands, the Government of the Canary Islands, city councils and island councils of all the islands, the beekeeping sector, the two public universities (ULPGC and ULL), Canary Islands environmental organizations, and agricultural cooperatives, to promote and build consensus on the project's objectives and actions.