The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) has confirmed that a second Asian hornet nest has been located in the Cobh area of Co. Cork.

The confirmation follows the removal of the first recorded nest of the invasive insect in Ireland from a private garden on the south side of Cork city yesterday (Friday, September 5).

The NPWS said that it has been "working continuously" since a sighting of an Asian hornet was recorded at the start of August.

The service has been working with experts from the National Biodiversity Data Centre and the National Museum of Ireland, along with local beekeepers to locate a nest.

"Further sightings of the Asian hornet in the Cork area were simultaneously investigated leading to the discovery of a second nest in Cobh on the evening of September 5.

"This nest is significantly smaller than the first nest, and is located roughly 10km from the first site," an NPWS spokesperson said.

The NPWS said that the second nest will be removed following the same protocol developed for the first removal.

This nest will be brought to the National Museum of Ireland for further testing and analysis.

An individual sighting of the insect in Dublin has also been verified.

Intensive surveying and track and trace activities are being conducted, to investigate evidence of further activity.   

The Asian hornet is a highly effective predator of honeybees, wasps and other important pollinators, such as hoverflies.

The huge size of its colonies, which can consist of up to 10,000 individuals per season, means that they can rapidly decimate bee numbers.

Due to its aggressive nature and feeding habits, the Asian hornet could have a serious impact on native insect biodiversity and on pollination more widely.

The NPWS said that monitoring will continue following international best practice.

Members of the public are asked to report any sightings of the Asian hornet, along with a photograph to the National Biodiversity Data Centre.