Asian death hornets have arrived in America

[China]

^^^Sodomy geese:

 

 

 

[HOF44]

Don't mess with Japanese honey bees!! https://twitter.com/TheBrandonMorse/status/1257668293370040321?s=20

[goskins10]

The bee does not always win: 

 

 

[757SeanTaylor21]

That hornet wasnt even tryin fight lol. He had its back turned

[Fan since a Fetus]

Ahhh!!! The queen demands the hive obey!!!! We are doomed to the sexual seduction and dancing presentation of the Queen Asian Hornet!!!!

 

 

Or maybe hyperbole on my part. It could just be the newest Blind Melon video 

[nonniey]

6 hours ago, 757SeanTaylor21 said:

That hornet wasnt even tryin fight lol. He had its back turned

I think that is generally how the Mantis fights  (Not that there is anything wrong with that).

 

 

[spjunkies]

Remember these?

 

 

[757SeanTaylor21]

Glad they found it 

[China]

 

[Mr. Sinister]

It has begun 

[China]

Nearly 200 queens found in Asian giant hornet nest removed in Whatcom County

 

Nearly 200 queens were found in an Asian giant hornet nest that was removed from a tree in a Blaine family's backyard last month.

 

Now the hunt is on for more nests in Whatcom County and beyond.

 

Entomologists with the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) said the first nest found in the United States is small: about one-fourth the size of some found in the Asian giant hornet's native Japan. The Blaine nest had 776 cells. In Japan, they have up to 4,000 cells.

 

But there is one concerning factor: nearly 200 queens were found inside the Blaine nest.

 

"A relatively small nest like this, able to pop 200 queens, it does give one a little bit of pause because potentially each of those queens could be a new nest next year,” said Sven Spichiger, WSDA managing entomologist.

 

After mating, queens leave the nest with the goal of creating their own colony.

 

WSDA’s original extraction gave them only workers. Then they found 108 queens still in cells, ready to emerge.

 

"As far as we can tell, we got there just in time,” said Spichiger.

 

When they came back four days later to finish the eradication, 76 queens had hatched.

 

"There is no doubt that, had we not intervened in and destroyed this nest, we would be starting with that number of 200 as a possibility,” said Spichiger.

 

While experts are certain they got to the nest before many queens left to start new colonies, they know there are more nests out there.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[88Comrade2000]

 

[Mr. Sinister]

Holy ****

[China]

Asian Giant 'Murder' Hornets arrive in the DC area for preservation

 

BELTSVILLE, Md. (ABC7) — Five Asian giant hornets, also known as "murder hornets," have arrived in the DC area for study and preservation at the Agricultural Research Service and the Smithsonian Biorepository.

 

The Hornets (Vespa mandarinia) came from the first nest found in the United States in Washington state.

 

Matt Buffington, a research entomologist with the ARS Systematic Entomology Laboratory in Beltsville, received the flash-frozen 2-inch long hornet vacuumed from a cavity in a tree on October 24. The shipment reportedly received two pupae, one worker, one male, and one queen.

 

Buffington transported the hornets to the National Museum of Natural History Biorepository in Suitland, Maryland, for cryopreservation.

 

Quote

These Asian giant hornet specimens are part of what we are terming nest zero," Buffington said in a statement. "They were taken in perfect condition, we know exactly where they were found, and now we are moving them directly into cryotanks for long-term preservation. Researchers now and into the future will have a genetic gold standard for comparing Asian giant hornets in this country.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[bearrock]

These ****ing scientists apparently never saw a horror movie....  

[Mr. Sinister]

Yup. We're ****ed.

[China]

‘Attack of the Murder Hornets’ documentary follows WSDA’s hunt for Asian giant hornets

 

A documentary was created about the Washington State Department of Agriculture’s efforts to find and trap the Asian giant hornet.

 

“Attack of the Murder Hornets,” can be streamed now on Discovery+.

 

A production crew spent six weeks in Washington filming beekeepers, researchers, and WSDA last fall.

 

It was by chance that filming began the day before WSDA entomologist Chris Looney caught the first live Asian giant hornet in the U.S. The film crew captured footage throughout the project, including when WSDA found and destroyed an Asian giant hornet nest.

 

The documentary also shows how the public worked with government agencies to find and trap the hornets, including widespread trapping work by members of the Mt. Baker Beekeeper Association and other citizen scientists around the state.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

 

[China]

Transportation crews to set Asian giant hornet traps

 

Transportation and agriculture crews plan to set traps in July along state highways to try to catch Asian giant hornets.

 

The Washington Department of Transportation announced Wednesday that it will partner with other agencies to set at least 1,200 traps across Washington, KING5 reported. They’ll focus on the northwest part of the state starting July 3.

 

The hornets, found in Blaine near the U.S.-Canadian border in December 2019, are still at large and pose a threat to honeybees and native hornet species. While not particularly aggressive toward humans, their sting is extremely painful.

 

The traps going out this summer will be placed at least 6 feet high on trees near edges of forests. Crews will check the traps weekly during other normal maintenance and preservation work.

The Department of Agriculture has placed the giant hornets on the list of quarantine pests. This gives the state more tools to help eradicate the invasive species by allowing the department to declare any land within 20 meters of a nest a restricted “infested site” even if it sits on private property.