Experts have warned sightings of killer Asian hornets will hit record levels this year.
The number of queens spotted on the Channel Island of Jersey - a key battleground to stop the mass invasion to the British mainland - is already close to surpassing the highest total observed in a single year.
To date in 2021, a total of 63 queens have been discovered - 38 by members of the public and 25 caught in traps spread around the island.
The previous highest recorded number came in 2019 when 69 were found.
The insects, which first appeared in Jersey in late 2016, could be devastating to Britain's native bee population as one hornet can eat up to 50 bees in a day.
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Alastair Christie, Jersey's Asian hornet co-ordinator, described the figure as "slightly alarming" but urged people not to panic.
He said: 'We are on track to surpass 2019 numbers, but trapping in 2019 was minimal and we are also a lot better at it now.
"So with the increase in trapping and the help from the public it stands to reason that we would find more.
"I am hoping that we have caught a greater proportion of the queens this year and that the number of nests won't be as high."
Six nests have also been spotted so far this year, which is down from the same period in 2019.
Mr Christie added: "I am optimistic that we are doing a good job of catching the queens."
He said the first worker hornets would be emerging in the next few weeks.
A local team of volunteers will soon begin tracking the insects, which Mr Christie said would help form a "clearer picture" of how the rest of the year could play out.
Islanders are being encouraged to check their sheds, garages and other outdoor areas for nests, and to report any sightings of an Asian hornet by emailing asianhornet@gov.je, attaching a photo if possible.
The species can be identified by their darker colour, a yellow/orange band across their lower end, a bright pale-yellow belt at the waist and the yellow lower half of their legs.
The species - which can kill with a single sting someone who is allergic - began to spread through Europe in 2004 after arriving in the south of France inside a freight ship.
They were spotted in the British Isles on the Channel Island of Jersey in late 2016.
But after years of establishing themselves on Jersey and Guernsey, the battleground shifted last year to Southern England.
This led to calls for a "people's army" to help fight off an impending invasion of killer hornets onto mainland Britain.
