MURDER HORNETS are back.
Scientists have found an Asian Giant Hornet, nicknamed as Murder Hornet (vespa mandarinia) in Snohomish County North of Seattle, US on June 4.
Specimens appear different from those found in 2019 and 2020 in British Columbia and the United States, right near the border of Canada.
Entomologists marked that the hornet was dried out and a male hornet, most likely a remnant from last season. New male murder hornets do not typically emerge until July.
This specimen is first found in Snohomish county and had a different coloring from that discovered on the Canadian border. DNA testing confirmed that the specimen is murder-hornet and El-Lissy specifies that they may work with state officials “to survey the area to verify whether a population exists in Snohomish County.”
Murder hornets, the largest hornets in the world were first spotted in North America. They are native to Asia and are not mainly hostile toward human beings. However, their sting is painful in the extreme, and repeated stings can kill, in rare. They pose a threat to honeybees.
Last summer, the Washington State Department of Agriculture implemented bottle traps, to prevent the further spread of hornets and it seems that a similar strategy will be followed in both Snohomish and King counties this year.
“We’ll now be fixing traps in the area and encouraging citizen scientists to trap in Snohomish and King counties”, said Sven Spichiger, an entomologist with the State Agriculture Department.
Giant hornets (5 cm long) are expected to emerge once again in July, with their spread to other parts of the state.
May this dead insect could be an omen of what is soon to come.