Scientists have discovered a live nest of the dangerous Asian giant hornets, sometimes known as “murder hornets.” The entomologists plan to destroy the nest, which was found in a tree in the town of Blaine, in the far northwestern corner of the state.
The discovery is an important milestone in the effort to prevent the world’s largest wasps from becoming established in the Pacific Northwest. “We’re very pleased to tell you that we did get to [a nest],” said an entomologist . Until the nest was found, scientists weren’t sure if their techniques to track the hornets would work in the region’s densely wooded terrain.
To stop the insects’ spread, killing individual workers is useless. So the scientists have set thousands of traps around northwestern Washington, in hopes of catching live insects that can be tracked back to their hives. The hornet that led trappers to the nest first flew around for about an hour before resting on a leaf. They then tracked her a few hundred yards into the woods and heard buzzing that led them to the hive.
Scientists first knew that the hornets had survived the winter when three queens were discovered in late spring. Since mid-summer, several hornets have been trapped at a couple locations in the same region of the state. Finding those hornets confirmed that queens had successfully reproduced from at least one initial nest formed in late 2019, and had created new nests.
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