Invasive ‘murder hornets’ eradicated in the U.S., announce officials

SEATTLE (AP) — The northern giant hornet, an invasive species often referred to as the “murder hornet” due to its painful sting and aggressive behavior towards honey bee hives, has officially been declared eradicated in the United States. This announcement comes five years after the hornet was first identified in Washington state, close to the Canadian border.

The Washington State Department of Agriculture, along with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, confirmed the eradication on Wednesday, stating that there have been no sightings of the hornet in Washington since 2021. This development marks a significant victory for both state officials and local residents.

Community involvement played a key role in this success; residents actively placed traps on their properties and reported any hornet sightings. Researchers were able to capture a live hornet and affixed a tiny radio tracking tag using dental floss, allowing them to trace its path to a nest in an alder tree. Just as several queens were set to emerge, scientists successfully destroyed the nest, thwarting a potential new population.

“As an entomologist with over 25 years of experience, I must say it’s a rare occasion when humans come out ahead in the battle against insects,” noted Sven Spichiger, the pest program manager at the Washington State Department of Agriculture, during a virtual news conference.

First discovered in North America in British Columbia, Canada, in August 2019 and confirmed in Washington state shortly afterward in December 2019, the hornets gained notoriety after causing 42 fatalities and injuring 1,675 people in China in 2013. In comparison, approximately 72 people in the U.S. die each year from bee and hornet stings, according to data from the National Institutes of Health.

Experts believe that the hornets likely arrived in North America via plant pots or shipping containers. DNA analysis revealed that the populations in British Columbia and Washington were not related and likely originated from different countries. Additionally, officials report no confirmed sightings in British Columbia since 2021, leading to the hornet also being considered eradicated in Canada.

These hornets are a significant threat to pollinators, capable of completely destroying a honey bee hive in as little as 90 minutes. They kill bees by decapitating them and subsequently take the brood to feed their own young. Their ability to sting through beekeepers’ protective suits, delivering almost seven times the amount of venom as a honey bee and stinging multiple times, makes them particularly dangerous. At one point, the Washington agriculture department even ordered reinforced suits from China to safeguard its workers.

While Washington has been the only state reporting confirmed northern giant hornet activity—four nests were discovered in 2020 and 2021—officials will remain vigilant. Recently, there was an unconfirmed sighting reported in Kitsap County, prompting ongoing monitoring and trapping efforts in the area. Spichiger emphasized the importance of staying alert, noting that other invasive hornet species are also a concern, such as yellow-legged hornets in Georgia and South Carolina, and southern giant hornets recently detected in Spain.