Invasive giant hornets have been spotted in the US for the first time https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/03/us/washington-giant-murder-hornets/index.htmlQuote
(CNN)Just when you thought 2020 could not get any worse. Now we have giant hornets with freakish eyes and a venomous sting to add to this year's long list of worries.
For the first time, Asian giant hornets have been spotted in the United States, specifically in Washington state, scientists say. Beekeepers have reported piles of dead bees with their heads ripped off, an alarming sight in a country with a rapidly declining bee population.
At more than two inches long, they're the world's largest hornets with a sting that can kill humans if stung multiple times, according to experts at the Washington State University. The giant insects are nicknamed "murder hornets."
"They're like something out of a monster cartoon with this huge yellow-orange face," Susan Cobey, a bee breeder at the Washington State University's department of entomology, said recently.
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Bees pollinate plants producing fruit, nuts and vegetables, and are crucial to the nation's food industry. Attack by the hornets risks decimating bees, which are already on endangered lists due to their sharply declining numbers.
‘Murder Hornets’ in the U.S.: The Rush to Stop the Asian Giant Hornethttps://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/02/us/asian-giant-hornet-washington.html
This post was edited by Ghot on May 4 2020 03:56am