Fighting Asian hornets in Coimbra!

In Portugal, we are faced with one of the most troublesome issues of recent years: the Asian hornet (Vespa velutina). Especially on the Coimbra side, Cantanhede Municipality Civil Protection teams are literally fighting day and night against this invasive species. The latest figures announced clearly reveal the seriousness of the situation. The teams destroyed 793 nests in 2025 alone. The number of primary and secondary nests eliminated in the first six months of this year (January-June) has already reached 163. In fact, when we look back at the figures, it is clear how the graph has climbed. While the number of nests destroyed in Cantanhede was 497 in 2022, it increased to 607 in 2023, to 791 in 2024 and finally to 793 in 2025. Civil Protection officials do not attribute this increase only to the increase in the bee population; He attributes this to the fact that, thanks to the information campaigns carried out, the public is now much more aware and reports any nest they see without delay. According to reports, the most reports and detections come from Cantanhede and Pocariça regions, where the population is more dense. Nests were generally found on tree branches, between fences or on the ground. However, in the first half of this year, there is a significant increase in nests detected especially in homes, warehouses and buildings. The reason is clear: Waking up from hibernation, the founding queen bees choose secluded and sheltered building edges to grow their first colonies. So how does the process work in the field? When citizens make a report, it goes directly to the incident management system called FLOW. The expert team affiliated with Civil Protection immediately makes a preliminary assessment, arrives at the address as soon as possible and carries out the intervention. In addition, teams try to prevent the threat at its source before colonization begins by setting special traps when queen bees begin to appear in the gardens in the spring. While Cantanhede Municipality states that it will continue this fight, which it has been carrying out with determination since 2015, it also reiterates its call to the residents of the region: When you see a suspicious nest around you, on your roof or in your garden, do not intervene on your own and immediately report it to the authorities. **Notification and Communication Channels:** * **Phone:** 231 423 818 (Every weekday, between 09:00 - 17:00) * **Email:** proteccao.civil@cm-cantanhede.pt **Source:** The Portugal News / Lusa (Cantanhede Municipality Civil Protection Service)