With a sting like a hot nail being hammered into the body , Asian hornets have killed at least six people in France . Now experts fear millions of them could be heading for Britain – and the threats they pose are to be discussed at a summit meeting by beekeepers . This is because the two-inch-long Asian hornets pose a terrible danger to our honeybees . They pick off bees as they leave their hive until the colony is so exhausted the hornets can move in and ransack it . Scroll down for video . Sting in the tail ? Experts fear millions of two-inch-long Asian hornets ( above ) could be heading to Britain after leaving six people dead and terrorising wildlife in France . The hornet is thought to have travelled to France on some Chinese pot plants in 2004 . It has colonised huge swathes of the country and , with a few hornets capable of destroying 30,000 bees in just a couple of hours , honey production has plummeted . The Norfolk Beekeepers ' Association will hold its Bee Health Seminar at Easton and Otley College on May 23 , organised in conjunction with the National Bee Unit , which delivers the Bee Health Programmes on behalf of Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs ( Defra ) . Topics under discussion will also highly infectious diseases which threaten bee colonies such as European and American foulbrood . Carolyne Liston , chairman of the Norfolk Beekeepers ' Association , warned Asian hornets are a 'very , very aggressive predator ' and said they could 'come here on the wind ' . She said : 'They can absolutely decimate colonies and we are concerned that it is going to come in on someone 's caravan who has been travelling in France . ' UK beekeepers have been sent email alerts by Defra asking them to be on the look-out for the menaces . Danger : The threats posed by Asian hornets are to be discussed at a summit meeting by beekeepers , while UK beekeepers have been sent email alerts by Defra asking them to be on the look-out . The Asian hornet can measure up to 2in long with a 3in wingspan – slightly smaller than the European hornet but much more aggressive . One Asian hornet can kill 40 bees in a minute , while a handful can destroy a hive of 30,000 bees in a couple of hours . They build rugby ball-shaped nests in trees , housing some 500 hornets . They scare off intruders by sending a lone worker hornet to 'warn ' them – if that fails , the workers attack en masse . Worker hornets have lifespans of 30-55 days . Asian hornets have a black head with an orange-yellow face and bright yellow leg tips , while the European hornet has a copper coloured head with a bright-yellow face and entirely reddish-brown legs . They have been urged not to approach nests , which they say hornets make in tall trees or in garages and sheds . If Asian hornets are spotted here , the National Bee Unit will send out experts from the Animal Health Veterinary Laboratories Agency to kill them using special chemicals . Ministers drew up battle plans in case killer Asian hornets are discovered in Britain last year . A law announced in the Queen 's Speech gave officials powers to enter private land and destroy new invasive species within days . Groups of Asian hornets hover in front of a beehive , picking off single honeybees , decapitating them and stripping off their wings and legs before making off with the 'meat ball ' to feed their young . In Asia , honeybees have learned to encircle an intruder hornet and , by flapping their wings , cause it to overheat and die . But the French bees have not had enough time to evolve an effective tactic . The hornet sting can be extremely painful to humans but , like bee stings , it is likely to kill only if the victim has a severe allergic reaction . The victims in France died from anaphylactic shock after being stung . Last night , a Defra spokesman confirmed there had been no sightings of Asian hornets in the UK so far .
Millions of Asian hornets have colonised swathes of French countryside . Vicious insects mutilate honeybees and prey on beehives to feed young . Six people have died in France after suffering allergic reactions to sting . Score: 6