<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8">
</head>
<body>
<p>WSU scientists enlist citizens in hunt for giant, bee-killing
hornet</p>
<p><br>
</p>
<section class="row single gutter pad-ends primary-categories">
<div class="column one">
<ul>
<li> <a
href="https://news.wsu.edu/category/food-agriculture/">Food
& Agriculture</a> </li>
</ul>
</div>
</section>
<header class="article-header">
<hgroup>
<h1 class="article-title">WSU scientists enlist citizens in hunt
for giant, bee-killing hornet</h1>
</hgroup>
<hgroup class="source"> <time class="article-date"
datetime="2020-04-06T06:00:29-07:00">April 6, 2020</time> </hgroup>
</header>
<figure class="featured-image"> <a
href="https://s3.wp.wsu.edu/uploads/sites/609/2020/04/V_mandarina_face_Baine-WSDA-copy.jpg">
<img
src="https://s3.wp.wsu.edu/uploads/sites/609/2020/04/V_mandarina_face_Baine-WSDA-copy-792x528.jpg"
class="attachment-spine-medium_size size-spine-medium_size
wp-post-image" alt="Closeup of Asian giant hornet."
width="792" height="528"> </a> <figcaption
class="wp-caption-text">Asian giant hornet, the world's largest
species of hornet, was found late last year in northwest
Washington. WSU Extension scientists are partnering with state
agencies, beekeepers, and citizens to identify and report the
invasive insect (Photo courtesy WSDA).</figcaption> </figure>
<p class="byline">By Seth Truscott, College of Agricultural, Human,
and Natural Resource Sciences</p>
<p>PULLMAN, Wash. – More than two inches long, the world’s largest
hornet carries a painful, sometimes lethal sting and an appetite
for honey bees. It is also the newest insect invader of Washington
state.</p>
<p>The Asian giant hornet, <em>Vespa mandarinia</em>, is
unmistakable, said Susan Cobey, bee breeder with Washington State
University’s Department of Entomology.</p>
<p>“They’re like something out of a monster cartoon with this huge
yellow-orange face,” she said.</p>
<p>“It’s a shockingly large hornet,” added Todd Murray, WSU
Extension entomologist and invasive species specialist. “It’s a
health hazard, and more importantly, a significant predator of
honey bees.”</p>
<p>Cobey, Murray and other WSU scientists are bracing for the giant
hornet’s emergence this spring. Sighted for the first time in
Washington last December, the hornet will start to become active
in April. WSU researchers are working with the Washington State
Department of Agriculture (WSDA), beekeepers and citizens to find
it, study it and help roll back its spread.</p>
<h2>Voracious predator</h2>
<p>In the first-ever sightings in the U.S., WSDA verified two
reports of the Asian giant hornet late last year near Blaine,
Wash. and received two probable, but unconfirmed reports, from
sites in Custer, Wash.</p>
<p>It is not known how or where the hornet first arrived in North
America. Insects are frequently transported in international cargo
and are sometimes transported deliberately.</p>
<p>At home in the forests and low mountains of eastern and southeast
Asia, the hornet feeds on large insects, including native wasps
and bees. In Japan, it devastates the European honey bee, which
has no effective defense.</p>
<figure id="attachment_201871"
aria-describedby="caption-attachment-201871" style="width: 300px"
class="wp-caption alignleft"><img class="size-medium
wp-image-201871"
src="https://s3.wp.wsu.edu/uploads/sites/609/2020/04/Hornet-in-hand-WSDA-photo2-300x200.jpg"
alt="An Asian Hornet held in someone's hand" width="300"
height="200"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-201871"
class="wp-caption-text">Asian giant hornets are usually about
1.5 to 2 inches in length, with an orange-yellow head and
striped abdomen (Photo courtesy WSDA).</figcaption></figure>
<p>The Asian giant hornet’s life cycle begins in April, when queens
emerge from hibernation, feed on plant sap and fruit, and look for
an underground dens to build their nests. Once established,
colonies grow and send out workers to find food and prey.</p>
<p>Hornets are most destructive in the late summer and early fall,
when they are on the hunt for sources of protein to raise next
year’s queens. <em>V. mandarinia </em>attack honey bee hives,
killing adult bees and devouring bee larvae and pupae, while
aggressively defending the occupied colony. Their stings are big
and painful, with a potent neurotoxin. Multiple stings can kill
humans, even if they are not allergic.</p>
<h2>Forever changes</h2>
<p>Growers depend on honey bees to pollinate many important
northwest crops like apples, blueberries and cherries.</p>
<p>With the threat from hornets, “beekeepers may be reluctant to
bring their hives here,” said Island County Extension scientist
Tim Lawrence.</p>
<p>“As a new species entering our state, this is the first drop in
the bucket,” said Murray. Once established, invasive species like
the spotted wing drosophila fruit fly or the zebra mussel make
“forever changes” to local crops and ecologies.</p>
<p>“Just like that, it’s forever different,” Murray said. “We need
to teach people how to recognize and identify this hornet while
populations are small, so that we can eradicate it while we still
have a chance.”</p>
<p>Beekeepers, WSU Master Gardener volunteers and other Extension
clients are often the first detectors of invasive species. WSU
scientists are now spreading awareness of the hornet to citizens
and developing a fact sheet to help people identify and safely
encounter the insects.</p>
<p>As partners with the Washington Invasive Species Council, they
also urge citizens to download the <a
href="https://invasivespecies.wa.gov/report-a-sighting/invasive-insects/)">WA
Invasives smartphone app</a> for quick reporting of sightings.</p>
<p>“We need to get the word out,” said Lawrence. “We need to get a
clear image of what’s happening out there, and have people report
it as soon as possible.”</p>
<h2>Early detection, faster eradication</h2>
<p>Scientists with the WSDA Pest Program are taking the lead on
finding, trapping and eradicating the pest. WSDA will begin
trapping for queens this spring, with a focus on Whatcom, Skagit,
San Juan, and Island counties.</p>
<p>“Our focus is on detection and eradication,” said WSDA
entomologist Chris Looney.</p>
<figure id="attachment_201883"
aria-describedby="caption-attachment-201883" style="width: 300px"
class="wp-caption alignright"><img class="size-medium
wp-image-201883"
src="https://s3.wp.wsu.edu/uploads/sites/609/2020/04/AGH_Stinger_WSDA_stinger-300x200.jpg"
alt="close up of hornet stinger" width="300" height="200"><figcaption
id="caption-attachment-201883" class="wp-caption-text">A
close-up of an Asian giant hornet’s stinger. The hornet can
sting through most beekeeper suits, can deliver nearly seven
times the amount of venom as a honey bee, and can sting multiple
times (Photo courtesy WSDA).</figcaption></figure>
<p>The agency plans to collaborate with local beekeepers and WSU
Extension scientists and entomologists with WSU focusing its
efforts on management advice for beekeepers.</p>
<p>Regular beekeeping suits are poor protection against this
hornet’s sting, said Looney. WSDA ordered special reinforced suits
from China.</p>
<p>“Don’t try to take them out yourself if you see them,” he said.
“If you get into them, run away, then call us! It is really
important for us to know of every sighting, if we’re going to have
any hope of eradication.”</p>
<p>To report an Asian Giant Hornet sighting, contact the Washington
State Department of Agriculture Pest Program at 1-800-443-6684, <a
href="mailto:pestprogram@agr.wa.gov">pestprogram@agr.wa.gov </a>or
online at <a
href="https://agr.wa.gov/departments/insects-pests-and-weeds/insects/hornets">agr.wa.gov/hornets</a>.</p>
<p>For questions about protecting honey bees from hornets, contact
WSU Extension scientist Tim Lawrence at (360) 639-6061 or <a
href="mailto:timothy.lawrence@wsu.edu">timothy.lawrence@wsu.edu</a>.</p>
<h2>Media contacts:</h2>
<ul>
<li>Tim Lawrence, WSU Island County Extension Director, (360)
639-6061, <a href="mailto:timothy.lawrence@wsu.edu">timothy.lawrence@wsu.edu</a></li>
<li>Seth Truscott, College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural
Resource Sciences, <a href="mailto:struscott@wsu.edu">struscott@wsu.edu</a></li>
</ul>
<p> </p>
<p><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-201872"
src="https://s3.wp.wsu.edu/uploads/sites/609/2020/04/Asian-hornet-infographic-high-scaled.jpg"
alt="Infographic: A giant problem for bees Washington State
University scientists are helping spread the word about the
impact of the Asian giant hornet. Citizens can help by
downloading the Washington Invasives App and reporting
sightings. Suspected sightings of this invasive species should
be reported to the WSDA Pest Program Hotline at 1-800-443-6684
or online at agr.wa.gov/hornets The Asian giant hornet is
Washington’s newest insect invader. Sighted in the Pacific
Northwest last year, the hornet is a voracious predator of honey
bees and other insects, and threatens valuable pollinators.
Adults are 1.5 to 2 inches long, with a large yellow or orange
head and a black- and yellow-striped abdomen. Attacking hives, a
single hornet can kill dozens of honey bees in minutes. A group
of 30 hornets can destroy an entire hive of 30,000 bees in less
than four hours. There have been two confirmed specimens in fall
2019, and four unconfirmed reports in Washington since the
initial detection. Hornets attack bee hives in the late summer
and early fall to feed their young queens. They defend occupied
hives and can sting through beekeeper suits. Giant hornets have
nearly seven times the amount of venom as a honey bee. Multiple
stings can kill." width="1386" height="779"></p>
<p><br>
</p>
<p><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://news.wsu.edu/2020/04/06/wsu-scientists-enlist-citizens-hunt-giant-bee-killing-hornet/">https://news.wsu.edu/2020/04/06/wsu-scientists-enlist-citizens-hunt-giant-bee-killing-hornet/</a>
<br>
</p>
<p><br>
</p>
<p><br>
</p>
<p>Ken</p>
<p><br>
</p>
</body>
</html>