Giant Asian ' hornets invade the US and are spreading rapidly

US News & Politics
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I wonder who is behind this

The first sightings in the US were recorded in November 2019, and now experts have stated colonies of giant hornets have been located and subsequently exterminated.

Chris Looney, entomologist Washington State’s Department of Agriculture, told the New York Times all the colonies need to be exterminated within the next two years, or the situation could spiral out of control.

He said: “This is our window to keep it from establishing. If we can’t do it in the next couple of years, it probably can’t be done. Don’t try to take them out yourself if you see them.

“If you get into them, run away, then call us! It is really important for us to know of every sighting, if we’re going to have any hope of eradication."

So far, it is unclear how Asian hornets made their way to the States, but they have already spread so widely they are being found north of the border in Canada.

Conrad Bérubé, a beekeeper and entomologist, was sent to destroy a hive on Vancouver Island, and detailed his gruesome encounter which left him bleeding.

He said: “It was like having red-hot thumbtacks being driven into my flesh.” He added he was left bleeding after being stung."

Asian hornets have also made their way to the UK, and a report last month found the damage they can cause could cost the UK £7.6million, and wreak havoc on the already dwindling bee population.

A study from French scientists revealed the only way to control the population of Asian hornets is by destroying their nests and bait traps.

And the research, which looked at how rapidly populations can spread, revealed the staggering cost to Europe.

The team divided the costs into three groups - prevention, fighting the invasion, and damage caused by the invasion.

The results indicated to eradicate Asian hornets would be 11.9million euros (£10.5million) for France, 9million euros (£8million) for Italy and 8.6million euros (£7.6million) for the UK.

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God a shiver ran through me when I read the thread title; it reminded me of one which was in my living room a couple of years ago, and although it wasn’t a giant one it was big enough to be. I just happened to glance at the window and there it was sat sitting there. When I failed in the attempt to hit it with a rolled-up newspaper, believe me, it took the effort personally, and came after me. I got out of the room in time, but I could hear it repeatedly slamming against the other side of the door, and in the end I had to call in a pest control operator. They’re seriously scary things!

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Shit! What a pussy you are! No wonder why you love communists! Let me guess you never played sports huh? Why don’t you start wearing a skirt?

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I played squash and tennis at club level, and badminton for fun. Now fuck off!

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Can you both duke it out in the DMs?

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I’d put Manhattan and TWR on ignore if only I knew how. They make my time on this board a fucking misery.

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You don’t how because you are too retarded to figure it out! Now its you that can fk off!

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I already explained to you how to do it a couple months ago.

Step by step.

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I was reading about this yesterday. These are nasty insects. They pretty much just shred the bees.

I wonder if they have a natural predator?

Two-inch long Asian hornets have invaded the US, and researchers warn they could obliterate the already declining honey bee population. When the hornets, also known as ‘murder hornets’ as they kill an average of 50 people a year, encounter bee colonies, they make their way through, killing all the adults before feeding on the young in a matter of hours.

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Which is is funny because he complains about putting us on ignore yet he can’t help responding to us in order to instigate stuff by derailing threads.

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This story was reported in the NY Times a couple of days ago, as this is now a problem in the US, and threatens the Honey Bee population. Kind of ironic huh?

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But researchers are describing an interesting defense being employed against the menacing hornet: the Japanese honeybee. Bees in Japan have been known to form a ball around the invader and vibrate to produce heat, which can essentially cook a hornet to death. The report said bees can survive in extreme temperatures and can kill a hornet in an hour.

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I guess those “Killer Bees” are a blessing in disguise.

These hornets may have their way with good old European honeybees (the standard beekeeper bees) but they will find a challenge to the ore aggressive and larger colonies of Africanized Honeybees we have in the southern US.

The Africanized honeybee was created in a lab to make up for the weakness of the standard European honey bee that has suffered thousands of years of selective breeding to produce a docile and thus vulnerable honey bee that is easy for beekeepers to work with. The Africanized Honey Bee is more properly suited to take on even the largest nest of murder hornets. And the Africanized Honeybee (Killer Bees) are less affected by mites, viruses, and other natural challenges than the Euro bees.

A blessing in disguise.

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So in your opinion the Asian Hornet may not survive in the South but the European bee is more in danger which can be found in Northern cooler climates? I also heard they are a threat to other bee populations to which Farmers rely on for pollination such as the bumble bee.

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From what I’ve been reading, yes (but Africanized Bees are also used by the larger northern honey makers). I’ve been talking to my dad about this too as he’s been a hobby beekeeper for 40 years and knows much more about this subject than I do.

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Interesting, and will have to look more into this. I still like to see an effort to eradicate this Asian hornet altogether. Remember we are still dealing with another invasive species such as the Asian Carp which has wreaked havoc on our river system where they were working their way up to the Great Lakes that has put a priority in stopping them with urgency. Same can be true with this problem.

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These hornets have been here for years. They didn’t just suddenly “appear”.

A buddy of mine that I used to work with told me they were here back in 2010. It’s just that the powers that be finally noticed.

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Thanks but because of my dyslexia I can’t do step by step stuff; I’d need someone to read out the instructions one by one, otherwise the sequencing does something to my brain,and I have to keep going back to the very first instruction. If the moderators could do it for me I’d be very grateful.

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