Washington State Department of Agriculture entomologist Chris Looney displays a dead Asian giant hornet, a sample sent from Japan and brought in for research last year in Blaine, Wash.; Credit: Elaine Thompson /AFP via Getty Images

Joe Hernandez | NPR

Murder hornets. They're back.

Authorities in Washington state have announced that they've confirmed the first U.S. report this year of an Asian giant hornet, or Vespa mandarinia, in a town north of Seattle.

"Basically the only information we have is that a slightly dried out, dead specimen was collected off of a lawn in Marysville," said Sven Spichiger, managing entomologist with the state agriculture department, during a press conference.

"There really isn't even enough information to speculate on how it got there or how long it had been there," Spichiger added.

Because of its withered condition and the fact that male giant hornets don't typically emerge until July, agriculture officials believe the hornet discovered in early June was likely from a previous season and just recently found.

So-called "murder hornets" are native to Asia but have been spotted in Washington state and Canada over the past two years. The sting of the Vespa mandarinia can be life-threatening to humans, and the killer insects are known to wipe out the colonies of their fellow bugs, particularly honey bees.

According to genetic testing of the specimen discovered in Washington this month, the dead hornet was not the same as the other giant hornets discovered in North America since 2019. The hornet's coloration, which indicates it came from southern Asia, also suggested it arrived in "probably a separate event" than the ones previously known, Spichiger said.

But he emphasized that that was not necessarily cause for alarm.

"I want to very much clarify that a single dead specimen does not indicate a population," Spichiger said.

Washington agriculture officials are now setting murder hornet traps in the area of the discovery and are encouraging "citizen scientists" to do the same.

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In the mountains of rural Japan, “murder hornets” are known for more than their aggression and excruciating sting. They are seen as a pleasant snack and an invigorating ingredient in drinks.

In the mountains of rural Japan, “murder hornets” are known for more than their aggression and excruciating sting. They are seen as a pleasant snack and an invigorating ingredient in drinks.

In the mountains of rural Japan, “murder hornets” are known for more than their aggression and excruciating sting. They are seen as a pleasant snack and an invigorating ingredient in drinks.

With queens that can grow to 2 inches long, Asian giant hornets can use mandibles shaped like spiked shark fins to wipe out a honeybee hive in a matter of hours, decapitating the bees and flying away with the thoraxes to feed their young.

If you’ve been itching to get back to the outside world, two words might make you think again: murder hornets. For the first time, these gigantic, invasive hornets have been spotted in the U.S., which could be a problem for both humans and honeybees.[...]

They don’t want people bugging out.

Asian giant hornets (a.k.a. murder hornets) have been spotted only in Washington state and Canada. Traps elsewhere are killing beneficial native wasps and bees.

They don’t want people bugging out.

Asian giant hornets in Pacific Northwest are unlikely to attack humans

The "shockingly large" hornets can kill humans with their sting and are known to destroy beehives.

What one expert called “something out a monster cartoon” has now arrived in the United States. The Asian giant hornet, which can decimate bee colonies and is responsible for 50 deaths a year in Japan, is now in Washington state, according to The New York Times. A new threat reaches the United States: A massive…

The post Giant Asian ‘Murder Hornets’ Spotted in US for First Time appeared first on The Western Journal.

The Asian giant hornet, seen for the first time in North America in 2019, is unlikely to murder you or U.S. bees, according to a Smithsonian entomologist

New Brunswickers needn't worry about all the buzz around 'murder hornets' because they wouldn't survive the cold winters, says biologist.

Some social media users are convinced that an early episode of The Simpsons also came close to predicting the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and the invasion of "murder hornets".

1

It's unlikely they will murder you, but they pose a serious threat to apiaries.

The sting of the Asian giant hornet can kill and that's not just an expression of speech. Since their discovery in 2019 in the US, traps have been set to see if Asian giant "murder hornets" have settled in the state. Libby Hogan has more.

Because we don't have enough on our plates as it is, now we've got 'murder hornets' flying around the United States. Murder hornets (actually Asian Giant Hornets, but that name didn't strike enough fear into the masses) have a sting powerful enough that China recommends medical treatment if stunk more than ten times, and emergency treatment if stung more than 30. *pours out a little liquor for Macaulay Culkin in My Girl*. And where is his glasses?! He can't see without his glasses! Put his glasses on! Here's a video of Coyote Peterson getting stung by one (the Japanese Giant Hornet was previously believed to be a subspecies of the Asian Giant Hornet, but has since been recategorized as a color morph). This is a video of a praying mantis eating a Giant Asian hornet until it's just a pile of limbs. So yeah, praying mantises -- start breeding them. And make sure to selectively breed them too so we can produce them bigger and bigger until they're preying on us because the way things are going how is that not how this ends? Keep going for the video while I surround my Animal Crossings town with preying mantises to protect my villagers and keep my five-star rating (okay, three).

The Simpsons has done it again, this time predicting the COVID-19 pandemic and murder hornets. Here are some other instances of The Simpsons predicting the future.

They say the hornet “hype" reminds them of the “killer bees” scare of the 1970s

Graphic viral video shows a praying mantis snatch a murder hornet from behind, hold its deadly stinger at bay and chew through its entire head.

The bee species has been under the looming threat of...

The post Bee-Killing Murder Hornets Have Somehow Landed In America For The First Time appeared first on Man's World India.

Asian giant hornet, which became more active in the state in April, is the world’s largest and can kill humans with multiple stings

• Alarm over deaths of bees from rapidly spreading viral disease
  

Researchers and citizens in Washington state are on a careful hunt for invasive “murder hornets”, after the insect made its first appearance in the US.

The Asian giant hornet is the world’s largest and can kill humans. But it is most dangerous for the European honeybee, which is defenseless in the face of the hornet’s spiky mandibles, long stinger and potent venom.

Continue reading...

The Asian giant hornet stings through clothing like a red-hot needle and slaughters honeybees by the thousands.

Insect experts say people should calm down about the big bug with the nickname "murder hornet" -- unless you are a beekeeper or a honeybee.

Washington state has another bug to worry about in addition to Asian giant hornets -- gypsy moths, which the state's governor says could become an "infestation."

Sightings of the Asian giant hornet have prompted fears that the vicious insect could establish itself in the United States and devastate bee populations.

Its sting is excruciating to people, but it is a bigger threat to honeybees vital for agriculture

-- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com

Bill Oakley, a writer on "The Simpsons," admitted on Twitter that perhaps the animated TV show did forecast some of our troubling current events.

Its sting is excruciating to people, but it is a bigger threat to honeybees vital for agriculture

-- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com

Asian giant hornets are native to temperate and tropical climates in East Asia. However, since last November, there have been several sightings of the insects on the west coast of North America.

Murderous Asian hornets are invading honeybee hives- decapitating the insects and feeding the bodies to their young. But Japanese bees are fighting back by cooking the predators to death.

Murder hornets are seven times more poisonous than a honey bee. They usually attack in groups. Each year in Japan around 50 people get killed by the murder hornets.

An episode of the Simpsons from 1993 seems to have accurately predicted 2020!

The video, shared on the microblogging site, shows a praying mantis catching and feeding on a murder hornet. It hunts down its food, holding the deadly stinger at bay and chew it starting from the massive brain.

The sting of the Asian giant hornet can kill and that's not just an expression of speech. Since their discovery in 2019 in the US, traps have been set to see if Asian giant "murder hornets" have settled in the state. Libby Hogan has more.

The sting of the Asian giant hornet can kill and that's not just an expression of speech. Since their discovery in 2019 in the US, traps have been set to see if Asian giant "murder hornets" have settled in the state. Libby Hogan has more.