The Asian giant hornet, known as the "murder hornet" for its size and lethal venom, has made its first appearance in Washington state, with several hundred additional sightings being reported so far.
Gloria Tso reports.
BROADCAST AND DIGITAL RESTRICTIONS~** Broadcasters: PART MUST COURTESY WSDA/PART MUST COURTESY HIROSHI SUZUKI/NO RESALES Digital: PART MUST COURTESY WSDA/PART MUST COURTESY HIROSHI SUZUKI/NO RESALES.~** Hundreds of Asian giant hornets have made their first appearance in the United States.
Known as the "murder hornet" for their size and lethal venom, the species is the world's largest hornet and can grow up to 2 and a half inches in length.
And now they've turned up in Washington state near the Canadian border.
State agriculture official Sven-Erik Spichiger says the deadly insect's arrival poses a major threat to bees and potentially even humans.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) SVEN-ERIK SPICHIGER, MANAGING ENTOMOLOGIST AT WSDA, SAYING: "The first detection was in Washington State (on) December 8th and was turned in by a homeowner near Blaine, which is up by the Canadian border.
And it's a fairly significant detection because the Asian Giant Hornet has been on our watch list basically because of its known activity of killing entire honeybee hives." Spichiger warns of a catastrophic impact on pollination and agricultural systems if the hornets were to start spreading across the U.S. Just a few of them are capable of wiping out an entire beehive within hours, killing bees by decapitating them, before taking the hive as their own and taking the brood to feed their own young.
And Spichiger says what makes the hornets extra dangerous is how their ground nests could be hidden in plain sight.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) SVEN-ERIK SPICHIGER, MANAGING ENTOMOLOGIST AT WSDA, SAYING: "We really don't want any private citizen trying to mess with an Asian Giant Hornet nest.
Typical beekeeping attire will simply not protect you.
The stinger on this insect is six millimeters long and will go readily through most clothes." Spicheger says anyone coming across a nest should immediately alert authorities.
While the hornets do not generally target people, they can attack when threatened, with stings that could potentially be fatal.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) SVEN-ERIK SPICHIGER, MANAGING ENTOMOLOGIST AT WSDA, SAYING: "An Asian giant hornet will sting you multiple times and can sting you multiple times and deliver larger doses of venom just because of the size of them." Scientists don't know for sure how the murder hornet made its way to Washington state.
They say the most likely scenario is that the big bugs made their way onto a container ship docking at one of Washington's ports.
And Spichiger says following the discovery of the first hornet, several hundred additional sightings have been reported.
Could we be seeing the Murder Hornets you keep seeing on facebook, here in the Wabash Valley?
A dead murder hornet was spotted in Washington State and millions across the USA are FREAKING out. Yet, there are some saying not..
