The Living Earth Newscast

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
US successfully eradicates murder hornets. American scientists have declared the
successful eradication of the Asian giant hornet, marking a rare
victory in the battle against invasive insects. The Asian giant hornet,
the world's largest hornet species, is infamously nicknamed the murder

(00:21):
hornet due to its dangerous sting and ability to destroy
entire honeybee colonies in mere hours. The US announced the
eradication of the species, five years after its first discovery
in Washington State, near the Canadian border, a rare triumph
against invasive insects. According to The Independent. On December eighteenth,

(00:43):
Washington State and the US Department of Agriculture reported that
no sightings of the invasive hornets have occurred in Washington
since twenty twenty one. This success was largely due to
local residents who agreed to set traps on their properties
and report sightings. Researchers captured a live hornet, attached a

(01:04):
miniature radio tracker, and followed it through dense forests to
a nest in an alder tree. The nest was destroyed
before new queens could disperse. I've been working in entomology
for over twenty five years, and it's rare that humans
win against insects, said Spence Spickager, Pest program manager at

(01:25):
the Washington State Department of Agriculture. Asian giant hornets, which
can grow up to five centimeters two inches long, gained
global attention in twenty thirteen when they killed forty two
people and seriously injured sixteen hundred seventy five in China.
In the US, hornet stings cause around seventy two deaths annually,

(01:48):
according to the National Institutes of Health. The hornets were
first spotted in North America in British Columbia, Canada, in
August twenty nineteen, and confirmed in Water, Washington State, in
December twenty nineteen after a resident in Watcom County reported
the issue. Beekeepers later reported destroyed beehives in the summer

(02:10):
of twenty twenty. Experts believe the hornets may have arrived
in North America via potted plants or shipping containers. DNA
evidence revealed that the hornet populations in British Columbia and
Washington were unrelated and likely originated from different countries. In
British Columbia, no confirmed sidings have been reported since twenty

(02:32):
twenty one, the nonprofit Invasive Species Council of Canada has
stated that the hornets may have been eradicated there as well.
The Asian giant hornet poses a severe threat to native
pollinators and insects. It can decimate a honeybee hive in
ninety minutes, decapitating the bees and taking over the hive

(02:53):
to feed its larvae. The hornet's sting can penetrate protective suits,
deliver venom seven times more potent than that of a honeybee,
and sting repeatedly. Washington remains the only U. S state
to confirm the presence of the hornet. Trappers located four
nests between twenty twenty and twenty twenty one. Spishager emphasized

(03:16):
that state authorities will remain vigilant, with entomologists continuing to
monitor traps in Kitsap County.