Watchful beekeepers in Yarm have managed to track deadly Asian Hornets to a hive in the area.
On September 18, one shocked bee enthusiast spotted one of the bee killers and immediately reported it to the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Their operatives have been working all week tracking hornets to attempt to find a nest.
A hive was discovered on September 22 and it is believed to have been subsequently destroyed.
This hive in Yarm was the most northerly hive yet to be found in the UK.
A spokesperson for the beekeepers of Yarm said: “Asian Hornets have spread from France to Britain and destroy honey bees, insects, and eventually reduce the population of wild birds which feed off these.
“They are a very serious threat.
“At present, the largest English population of Asian Hornets is in Kent and it is proving extremely difficult to eliminate.
“The most northerly hive was found and destroyed in Hull as was a single hornet in Newcastle.
“It is understood that this hive in Yarm has become the mostly northerly hive yet discovered.
“One Asian hornet was spotted by a shocked, eagle-eyed beekeeper in Yarm on Monday, September 18.
“The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affrairs (DEFRA) were immediately informed, took this very seriously and moved straight into action.
“They attended the site and many operatives have worked all week, tracking individual hornets back along their flightpaths, until they finally found the hive on Friday. 22 September.
“It is understood that they returned on Saturday to destroy the hive.”
Nicola Spence, Chief Plant Health officer for DEFRA, said: "We can confirm a sighting of an Asian hornet in Yarm, North Yorkshire.
"The National Bee Unit followed this up and found a nest which will now be removed and destroyed.
“Whilst the Asian hornet poses no greater risk to human health than other wasps or hornets, they can cause damage to honey bee colonies and other beneficial insects.
"We ask people to look out for any Asian hornets and if you think you’ve spotted one, report your sighting through the Asian hornet app or online.”
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The predatory wasp (known as the Asian hornet) is an aggressively invasive species from Asia.
In September 2016, the first sighting of the deadly wasps were seen in Gloucestershire.
Sightings of the Asian Hornet should be reported to Defra on 0300-200-301.
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