Video: First Nest of Invasive Asian Giant Hornets Finally Located in Washington State

After a protracted search, officials in the US state of Washington have located the first American nest of the Asian giant hornet, an invasive species whose potentially deadly sting and infamous practice of slaughtering honeybee hives has earned it the moniker “murder hornet.”

The Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) announced on Friday that a week’s worth of searching had finally yielded what entomologists and locals alike had long feared: the Asian giant hornet is building nests in the United States. The officials found one in a tree hollow in Blaine, a town on the US-Canada border.

​Officials said a treeborne nest is unusual, since the hornets typically nest in the ground, but it’s not unknown.

The WSDA notes the entomologists attached radio tracking devices to three hornets, leading them to the nest on Thursday evening. Officials plan to return on Saturday to eradicate the nest, after the weather improves.

The 2-inch-long insect is the largest of any kind of wasp or hornet and is native to East Asia. Aside from their extremely powerful stings and aggressive demeanor, the so-called “murder hornets” can decimate honeybee hives, using their powerful mandibles to bite the tiny bees in half before feeding them to their larvae. A small group of hornets can massacre an entire honeybee hive in a few hours.

Sourse: sputniknews.com

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