A HIGHCLIFFE man has described the “scary” moment he claims to have encountered a deadly Asian hornet.

The predatory insects, which are around 3cm long, have reportedly been spotted in several areas of southern England recently.

Originally from the Far East, they are believed to have been inadvertently imported to France in 2004 in a shipment of pottery from China.

The Asian hornet, Vespa velutina, is smaller than the native British variety of hornet and has a black head with an orange-yellow face and an entirely dark brown or black velvety body, bordered with a fine yellow band.

Paul Hack believes he discovered one in his friend’s bedroom in Highcliffe.

The 47-year-old said: “The size of it was unbelievable. It was absolutely huge – I would have thought it was an inch and a half long. You could see every detail on its body. It definitely looked too big to be a wasp.”

Paul said he first read about the bugs in the news.

“This type of hornet is horrible. Although they’re said to be deadly, I wasn’t frightened, but it was a scary experience. It seemed to be looking at me and its eyes said ‘I’m going to go for you’.

“It didn’t fly around much, it stayed in view at all times. I rolled up a newspaper and killed it before putting it in a plastic tub as evidence.

“I had to be very careful as even when they’re dead, they can still sting you.”

Beekeepers have been warned to keep an eye out for the hornets as they are a very effective predator of honey bees and can devour up to 50 a day.

Peter Darley, a secretary of the Bournemouth and Dorset South Beekeepers’ Association, said the Asian hornet was a “highly aggressive predator” of native insects.

He added: “The queens can fly distances which are greater than the width of the English Channel, so their arrival, whilst not certain, is all but so and there is not much that we can do about it.

“We have sentinel hives along the south coast and any arrival will be reported to Defra, but other than the destruction of their huge nests, not much can be done.”

Andrew Whitehouse, conservation projects manager at insect charity Buglife, said it was “not impossible” for the insects to fly across the Channel, but they could also come across in plant pots or crates.

“They have got quite a fierce sting and they are slightly more aggressive.

“The stings can be very painful, and if you do disturb a nest, it could be very unpleasant,” he added.

The sting from Asian hornets can be extremely painful but, like bee stings, it is only likely to kill a human if the victim has a severe allergic reaction.

They are, however, often confused with the Asian Giant Hornet. Their stings can be fatal, but they have so far never been seen outside East Asia.

Anyone who thinks they have seen an Asian hornet is asked to contact the GB Non Native Species Secretariat by emailing alertnonnative@ceh.ac.uk.

How to spot one:

Queens are up to 3 cm in length; workers up to 25 mm (slightly smaller than the native European hornet Vespa crabro)

Entirely dark brown or black velvety body, bordered with a fine yellow band

Only one band on the abdomen: 4th abdominal segment almost entirely yellow/orange

Legs brown with yellow ends

Head black with an orange-yellow face

Vespa velutina is a day flying species which, unlike the European hornet, ceases activity at dusk.

This is the time of year that queen wasps - which are much larger than normal wasps - emerge, and they can sometimes be confused.