Public urged to drown wasps in beer in bizarre conservation project, condemned by wildlife experts

The Big Wasp Survey is urging members of the public to make wasp traps out of beer 
The Big Wasp Survey is urging members of the public to make wasp traps out of beer

The public has been urged to drown wasps using beer in a bizarre conservation project, which has been condemned by wildlife experts.

Ecologists at the University College London (UCL) and the University of Gloucestershire are encouraging drinkers to set alcohol traps in their gardens then post the dead carcasses back to them, so the insects can be identified and counted.

The team claims it wants to ‘harness the public’s hatred of wasps’ to find out more about where they live and how common different types are, in the The Big Wasp Survey.

Entomologist Professor Adam Hart, of the University of Gloucester, said: “While we are asking people to kill some wasps, which is a bit unusual for a project aimed at conserving them, it really is the only way that we can identify the wasp species around and be sure that the information we get from the project is worthwhile.

“At this time of the year, wasp colonies are at the end of their life and the wasps we catch are old workers, who will die at the end of the summer anyway. This means our methods won’t have any effect on the overall population.”

The charity Buglife has warned that beer traps could catch bees and other insects  - Credit:  Redmond Durrell / Alamy
The charity Buglife has warned that beer traps could catch bees and other insects Credit: Redmond Durrell / Alamy

However insect experts have criticised the project pointing out that wasps are important pollinators and the traps are likely to capture bees and other insects.

Most other insect counting projects, such as the annual Great British Bee Count simply involves taking photographs and recording the locations of sightings.

Matt Shardlow, CEO of insect conservation charity Buglife, said: “We are very uncomfortable about a project that is harnessing the UK public’s hatred of wasps and encouraging them to kill wasps wholesale.

“These traps are indiscriminate and will attract and kill lots of insects, including flies and bees.

“Pollinator populations are in decline, including wasp populations that have plummeted dramatically since the 1980s   We should be encouraging tolerance and understanding of our disappearing pollinators, not fostering hatred.

“It is not clear that the scientific aims add sufficient value to justify the slaughter – the ends do not appear to justify the means.”

Beer traps can end up catching dozens of wasps and other insects 
Beer traps can end up catching dozens of wasps and other insects

Buglife has also spent years campaigning alongside the National Farmers Union to secure a national pollinator monitoring programme which is expected to be implemented by Defra within the next 12 months and will soon provide accurate data on wasp numbers.

There are more than 9,000 species of wasp in the UK but only a handful of the species are the black and yellow social wasps that people get bothered by.

A single colony of social wasps can remove several kilograms of insect pests (aphids, caterpillars) over a summer. And unlike bees, wasps pollinate a wide range of plants - they are generalists.

Wasps are close relatives of ants and bees. Wasp populations in the UK are declining at similar rates to bee populations.

Beer trapping is a common technique used by beekeepers to lure wasps away from their hives. However, it does result in drowning the wasps that are attracted to the beer.

Dr Seirian Sumner  from UCL said "The black and yellow wasps that bother us at picnics are the social wasps and there are a number of different species that live in the UK.

"We would like to find out more about where they live and how common they are; and to do that we need the public's help."

The project, in partnership with the BBC's Countryfile programme, is sponsored by the Royal Entomological Society.