A British Government department has urged people to be on the lookout
for a rare Turkish bee that has escaped after being carried into the
UK in holidaymakers’ luggage.
According to reports, the British Beekeepers Association warned that
the bee the osmia avosetta species could have a devastating effect on
British bees, after it flew away from a makeshift nest inside a
Bristol home.
Experts said it could endanger native species by spreading deadly
viruses, or multiply and eventually out-compete British bees.
The family which inadvertently imported it from Dalaman, Turkey, where
they had spent a holiday, reportedly discovered that the bee was
constructing cocoons out of flower petals in their home.
When the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs found out,
it announced its decision to capture and kill the bee.
The insect, however, flew away before the DEFRA could carry out its threat.
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