More: Washington state agricultural officials destroyed the Whatcom County nest of 'murder' hornets just in time, a post mortem of the nest determined. It was the size of a basketball, and inside researchers found 76 virgin queen hornets and 108 pupae, nearly all queens. Queen hornets mate and then leave the next to establish new colonies. So, destroying this nest came just in time to stop further spread of the lethal insects. Scientists think other colonies are already established in the county. Neighboring British Columbia also harbors the pest. Hornets kill a few dozen people a year in Asia. By comparison, native hornets, wasps and bees kill an average of 62 people a year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said. The giant Asian hornet is an invasive pest and Washington is mounting a campaign to eradicate the species before it decimates local bee hives. Honeybees pollinate many crops that make up the state's multi-billion dollar agricultural sector.
{25/10/20} Real essential workers* in Washington state have eradicated the first nest of invasive "murder hornets" found in the US. The giant wasps, Vespa mandarinia, are an Asian forest species that specializes in raiding bee hives to massacre its inhabitants. The first nest located by agricutural department workers was found Thursday in Blaine, Washington near the US-Canadian border. They spent weeks searching for the invaders' nest, tracking individuals using tiny transmitters tied to their bodies with dental floss. The insects are large, about two inches, and have a painful sting, which can penetrate ordinary apiary garments. On Satiurday, workers dressed in protective isolation suits vacuumed out the nest in a hollow tree. An official said they may be other nests, but the raid was successful and demonstrated the feasibility of eradicating them before they commit more bee "murder" by decapitation.
* The Very White House is claiming an exemption for VP Mike Pence as an "essential worker" from quarantine under CDC guidelines. His chief of staff and four other staffers have tested positive for SARS CoV-2. Pence is the titular head of the regimes COVID-19 task force. The VP has scheduled campaign appearance in Kansas on Sunday and will preside in the Senate for the confirmation of Amy Barrett