Terrifying Asian hornets which are making their home in Britain have killed a pensioner.
The 77-year-old woman – who has not been named – was hiking in France when she was stung by the brutal critters.
Emergency services rushed to the hiking trail to help but the woman was pronounced dead after reportedly suffering a heart attack following the sting.
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Four others in the hiking group were also hospitalised after being stung by the Asian hornets in the incident in Brittany.
(Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
One of the victims – a 68-year-old woman – remains in intensive care following the attack and reports in the area state another local man was attacked by the beasts in the following days – being repeatedly stung on his arms, legs, head and torso.
The hiking group came across the nest, on the ground next to a tree, while following a hiking trail near Pleudihen-sur-Rance, C tes-d’Armor. The trail has now been closed off to the public for the nest to be destroyed.
Asian hornets, which have the Latin name Vespa velutina, are insects that prey on smaller creatures, such as honey bees but their stings can be fatal.
The evil insects were first spotted in the UK in 2016, after being accidentally brought to France in 2004. They look similar to the native European hornet, but are slightly smaller and darker and this year have been seen more and more in the UK thanks to rising temperatures.
A single Asian hornet can devour up to 50 honey bees at a time and just one hornet nest can produce an average of 350 potential queens and male hornets for mating, as well as up to 6,000 workers.
(Image: UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology)
The “yellow-legged” pests are currently being monitored by the National Bee Unit (NBU) in the UK and all sightings should be reported through the Asian Hornet Watch app, so that nests can be quickly destroyed to limit the insect’s spread amid fears they are taking over.
Alexandra Lecomte, who works to combat invasive species said: “Passing too close to a nest can cause the hornets to become agitated.
“We consider that a perimeter of three or four metres around a nest can be dangerous, because they are sensitive to vibrations.”
Fears have been growing for many years that the invasive insects have used the Channel Islands as a launching pad to dig trenches in mainland Britain.