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Officials in Washington state announced Thursday that the first Asian giant hornet nest of the season has been destroyed just days after they discovered it.
The nest, located near Blaine in Whatcom County along the Canadian border, was eradicated Wednesday after members of Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) vacuumed 113 worker hornets from the habitat.
The team then removed bark and decayed wood near the bottom of an alder tree that provided entrance to the nest, which had nine layers of comb.
'While we are glad to have found and eradicated this nest so early in the season, this detection proves how important public reporting continues to be,' said Sven Spichiger, WSDA managing entomologist in a statement.
'We expect there are more nests out there and, like this one, we hope to find them before they can produce new queens.'
The nest was discovered after officials netted three hornets and fitting them with tracking devices between August 11 and August 17.
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Officials in Washington state announced Thursday that the first Asian giant hornet nest of the season has been destroyed just days after they discovered it.
In addition to the worker hornets vacuumed from the tree, WSDA staff caught 67 additional hornets in the area with nets during the mission to destroy the nest, which itself had nearly 1,500 hornets in various stages of development.
A portion of the alder tree was also cut and sent to a lab at Washington State University in Bellingham for a further analysis.
The nest was located in the base of a dead alder tree in rural Whatcom County, about 2 miles from a nest the agency eradicated last October and about one-quarter mile from where a resident reported a live sighting of an Asian giant hornet on August 11.
The Asian giant hornets are sometimes called murder hornets because they prey on other bees.
Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) vacuumed 113 worker hornets from the habitat. They also caught 67 additional hornets in the area with nets during the mission to destroy the nest, which itself had nearly 1,500 hornets in various stages of development
The nest, located near Blaine in Whatcom County along the Canadian border, was eradicated Wednesday
The hornets invade hives to decapitate adult bees in order to steal larvae to feed their own young.
And the problem that stems from this natural war is that bees are already considered an endangered species in the US.
Asian hornets were first detected in the US in 2019 when a hornet was reported in Whatcom County.
The nest, which housed 500 workers and 200 queens, was destroyed in an operation on October 24.
The process began similar to the recent mission - hornets caught in a cage were strapped with radio trackers.
Asian hornets were first detected in the US in 2019 when a hornet was reported in Whatcom County. The nest, which housed 500 workers and 200 queens, was destroyed in an operation on October 24 (pictured)
Although these invasive insects kill honeybees and native US hornets, they are not particularly aggressive toward humans.
However, their sting is extremely painful and repeated stings, though rare, can kill.
Despite the fact this nest has been eradicated, officials say it is imperative the public continue to help find this invasive species, which can decimate entire hives of honeybees, which are already under siege from mites, diseases, pesticides and loss of food.
Murder hornets kill honeybees, which are already under siege from mites, diseases and other factors. They have an extremely painful sting and are the world's largest hornet, at two inches
The first confirmed detection of the hornet in the US was in December 2019 near Blaine and the first live hornet was trapped in July 2020
In March, Washington state said it was making plans for the 2021 murder hornet season, similar to last year's, emphasizing public outreach, reporting and trapping.
More than half of confirmed Asian giant hornet sightings in Washington and all in Canada came from the public, WSDA has previously stated.
The first confirmed detection of the hornet in the US was in December 2019 near Blaine and the first live hornet was trapped in July 2020.
The invasive insect is normally found in China, Japan, Thailand, South Korea, Vietnam and other Asian countries.
'The hornets enter a "slaughter phase" where they kill bees by decapitating them. They then defend the hive as their own, taking the brood to feed their own young,' the WSDA has said previously.
The agency has already killed six or seven hives in Washington State.
Despite their nickname, the hornets kill at most a few dozen people a year in Asia, and experts say it is probably far less but they do deliver painful stings to humans.
Hornets, wasps and bees typically found in the US kill an average of 62 people a year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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