The Summary
- Southern giant hornets, sometimes referred to as “murder hornets,” have been found in Europe for the first time.
- A study last month confirmed that two pairs of the hornets have been found in northern Spain since 2022.
- Scientists are hunting for the hornets’ nest.
The nest of the first southern giant hornets discovered in Europe is being sought after by researchers in Spain.
The insects, which reach an average length of 2 inches, are sometimes called “murder hornets” due to their reputation for destroying beehives. They are indigenous to Thailand, Vietnam, China, and India, among other Asian countries.
Five Spanish scientists reported two distinct sightings of southern giant hornets, scientifically known as Vespa soror, in a paper that was published last month in the journal Ecology and Evolution. Both were in the province of Asturias, in the northern city of Siero: In March 2022, two were observed, followed by two more in October 2023.
The hornets’ nest, according to researchers, is at least a year old.
Originally from other regions of Asia, northern giant hornets are closely related species that were first observed in the United States in late 2019 in Washington state. Despite having shorter nesting seasons and smaller colonies and nests, the northern and southern hornets behave and look alike.
In October 2020, the first northern giant hornet nest discovered in the United States was swiftly destroyed; however, the following year, a live hornet was sighted in Washington.
According to research published in 2021, southern giant hornets are known to send out scouting teams to locate prey colonies. The scouts notify other hornets to join them by rubbing their bodies on hives or nearby foliage.After that, they go through a “slaughter phase” where they can eliminate entire beehives in a few short hours.
Other than the four recorded in Spain, neither northern nor southern giant hornets have been discovered in Europe. The hornets most likely arrived on a cargo ship, according to the scientists who conducted the new study.
Because they actively pursue native hornets, bees, butterflies, moths, and flies, Omar Sanchez, the study’s principal author and a zoology professor at the University of Oviedo in Spain, stated that he anticipates the hornets would have an effect on the ecosystem’s equilibrium. The availability of honey and the pollination processes that many plants and crops depend on can be impacted by a sustained decrease in the bee population.
According to him, the advent of another Asian hornet can exacerbate the negative effects of the Vespa Veluntina, a type of Asian hornet that is seriously harming the beekeeping industry here in northern Spain.
Researchers are looking for the nest so they may destroy it, Sanchez continued.
It’s a little bit difficult because this species buries its nest more than 30 meters underground, making it difficult to locate, he said. We’re making an effort.
According to Sanchez, the researchers have also been searching for further hornet sightings.
The four hornets were located and captured by Sanchez and his study co-authors after local beekeepers reported seeing strange-looking wasps. To verify the species, the researchers collected DNA samples from the hornets after trapping them and performed genetic testing and analysis.
According to Texas A&M University entomologist Molly Keck, the DNA investigation verifying the species is the first step toward mitigation efforts, which include informing local authorities, educating the public and beekeepers, and planning “so that management plans, education, mapping, distribution can be done.”
“Most of these invasive species are going to come in through a port city somewhere,” she continued, “so whatever quarantines and check measures are done, there are really going to be the way that they re spotted.”
According to Keck, if nations wish to guarantee that their cargo is bug-free, such procedures may need to be strengthened globally as a precaution.
The discovery of southern giant hornets in Spain, according to Sanchez, suggests that more are probably coming.
He predicted that this species would likely be found in other parts of Spain and most likely Europe in the near future.
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