Scientists in Washington state destroyed the first known nest of “murder hornets” found in the United States, which carried more than 500 live specimens in various stages of development.
Washington State Department of Agriculture entomologists discovered the nest last month in a tree north of Seattle, close to the Canadian border, according to ABC News.
“As far as we can tell, we got there just in time,” said Sven-Erik Spichiger, an entomologist leading the efforts to kill the hornets. “We know from the literature that a small percentage of these will go on to form colonies next year, should they have been given the chance to escape.”
The nest contained 190 larvae, 112 female worker bees, nine male bees, and six unhatched eggs. There were at least 76 queen bees and 108 capped cells with pupae, most of which were said to be new virgin queens.
The nest was eradicated by vacuuming out the hornets, and the entomologists removed the section of the tree with the nest, later opening it to collect remaining hornets. The crew pumped carbon dioxide into the tree during the nest removal to anesthetize the hornets. Many of the insects are still alive, according to officials. The nest was about 14-inches long and 9-inches wide.
It is unclear if any queens escaped, and scientists believe there could still be other nests in existence.
Spichiger said it’s impossible to trace how the hornets locate to an area, but the goal is to try and eliminate them before they grow in numbers.
Asian giant hornets are considered the world’s largest hornet at 2-inches long. The first nest, which was about the size of a basketball, was found last year along the Canadian border, but only dead wasps were found. They are not known to be native to the U.S. In May of this year, when the hornets began to emerge from hibernation, the Associated Press reported live murder hornets had been sighted. The first hornet was successfully captured in July.
The hornets are said to kill at most a dozen people a year in Asian countries, but experts predict the numbers could be less. A couple of hornets can devastate entire honeybee hives, adding yet another risk to honeybee populations and apiarians who are still working to address colony collapse disorder.
The hornet’s sting is considered more painful than a typical bee or wasp, and people are advised to be cautious near the insects and not remove or eradicate the nests themselves.
