The fight against invasive exotic species is intensifying in the Var region

The fight against invasive exotic species is intensifying in the Var region. On October 7, 2026, during the third departmental committee meeting, the prefecture reviewed the species under surveillance and the measures deployed to slow their spread. Present were the prefect, Hermence Forgeat from FREDON PACA, Raynald Jaubert from the French Biodiversity Office, Denis Ferrieu from the Regional Directorate for Food, Agriculture and Forestry, and Olivier Blight, a researcher at Avignon University. The electric ant remains the main concern, but the Asian hornet with yellow legs, pine tortoise scale, and African leafhopper are also closely monitored. Strategies vary by species: early detection, treatments, limiting plant movements, trapping, nest destruction, and mobilization of local authorities and individuals.