||| FROM CNN |||
Entomologists in Washington state are setting up traps and urging people to be on the lookout after a “murder hornet” was spotted attacking a paper wasp nest this week near the US-Canadian border.
It’s the first confirmed sighting of a live “murder hornet,” or Asian giant hornet as they’re formally known, this year, according to a news release from the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA).
It was reported in a rural area near Blaine, Washington, on Wednesday by a resident who was able to get a photograph of the distinctive yellow and black insect. Experts confirmed that it was an Asian giant hornet on Thursday.
“This hornet is exhibiting the same behavior we saw last year — attacking paper wasp nests,” Sven Spichiger, WSDA managing entomologist said in the news release. “If you have paper wasp nests on your property and live in the area, keep an eye on them and report any Asian giant hornets you see. Note the direction they fly off to, as well.”
The hornet was spotted about two miles away from where WSDA staff had found and eradicated an Asian giant hornets’ nest in October of 2020. It was about a half-mile from the border, the WSDA said.
Officials in Washington and British Columbia are setting up live traps in the area to try to catch a live hornet and tag it, so they can hopefully track it back to its nest, the release said.
READ FULL ARTICLE: www.cnn.com/2021/08/13/us/murder-hornet-washington-scn-trnd/index.html
