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BACKGROUND: The yellow‐legged hornet, Vespa velutina nigrithorax, is an invasive alien species (IAS) which was accidentally introduced in Europe from Asia. This social insect preys primarily on honeybees but also on other pollinators and insects. Consequently, the establishment of this pest has a negative impact on biodiversity, pollination and economy. There is no clear coordination and uniformed methods for eradication measures between countries. Here we present the first field study of the strategy of eradication of the pest species V. velutina that has been conducted in the westernmost Mediterranean archipelago. RESULTS: We investigated the combination of different eradication methods, such as trapping; the use of the citizen science data for detection of presence, the active search of nests and the removal of nests using mechanical methods. The progression of the number of secondary nests found was 1 (2015), 9 (2016) and 20 (2017), with zero during 2018, 2019 and 2020, and just one embryo nest in 2018. More than half of the nests (58%) were detected thanks to citizen science data. The people sent us adult detections, and we started the triangulation method to find the nests. The last hornet found in the traps was in June 2018. CONCLUSION: Early detections of the IAS are crucial to minimise their effects, and citizen science may offer an important source of information to determine the presence and distribution of V. velutina. The findings we present here indicate successful management for this globally significant pest and could contribute to advance the 'science of eradication'. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photo-identification is an increasingly used method for the study of animal populations. Natural marks such as coloration or scale pattern to identify individuals provide an inexpensive and less invasive alternative to conventional tagging methods. Photo-identification has previously been used to distinguish individual snakes, usually by comparing the pileus region. Nevertheless, this method is seldom used in capture-recapture studies. We show the effectiveness of photo-identification in snakes using specific software for individual recognition applied to a wildlife control study of horseshoe whip snakes. Photos were analysed with Automatic Photo Identification Suite (APHIS), which allowed us to compare the variability of head scale patterns surrounding the parietal shields instead of the traditional method of using large scale groups of the pileus. APHIS correctly identified 100% of recaptures of snakes. Although further studies are needed, the variability of the surrounding scales of the pileus region seems a robust method to identify and differentiate individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The introduction of species is a major threat to biodiversity conservation. Island biodiversity is especially sensitive to the arrival of new species, and species introductions are one of the major concerns of conservation management policies. Here, we report for the first time the arrival of Callinectes sapidus, a new potentially invasive crab species from the East coast of America to the Balearic Islands (Spain). It appeared simultaneously in both Mallorca and Menorca islands. Nine different records of 20 individuals were documented in six different localities, suggesting an initial colonization process of the territory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]