KINGSTON, R.I. \u2013 May 12, 2020 \u2013 News of the arrival in North America of a non-native insect with the terrifying colloquial name of murder hornet has alarmed residents around the country. But a 溏心vlog免费B站 entomologist said there is little reason for Rhode Islanders to worry about them.<\/p>\n
Two murder hornets \u2013 which are more appropriately called Asian giant hornets \u2013 were discovered in Washington State in December shortly after a nest was discovered in nearby British Columbia. Native to Japan, where they are responsible for about 50 human deaths per year, the 2-inch insects with orange heads and black eyes are best known for their foraging behavior of ripping the heads off honeybees and feeding the rest of the bees\u2019 bodies to their young.<\/p>\n
\u201cTheir reputation as murder hornets comes from the fact that they can kill a lot of honeybees in a very short period of time,\u201d said 溏心vlog免费B站 entomologist Lisa Tewksbury. \u201cThe major concern about their arrival in North America is for the damage they could cause to commercial honeybees used for pollinating agricultural fields. They are capable of quickly destroying beehives.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tewksbury said the hornet\u2019s sting isn\u2019t any more toxic than that of the bees and hornets commonly found around New England, but because of their large size, murder hornets can deliver a larger dose of toxin with each sting. They are a danger to humans only when stung multiple times.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut they\u2019re not known to aggressively attack humans,\u201d she said. \u201cIt only happens occasionally and randomly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rhode Island is home to two hornets similar in size to the murder hornet \u2013 the cicada killer hornet, which dig their nests in sandy or light soil in areas like athletic fields and playgrounds, and the European hornet, a non-native species that has become naturalized in New England after its arrival here in the 1800s. Like the murder hornet, they are among the largest wasp-like insects in the world.<\/p>\n
Tewksbury said that it is extremely unlikely that the Asian giant hornets in the Pacific Northwest are in Rhode Island or likely will be soon. The concern is that no one knows how the hornets made it to Washington.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t know the pathway it took to get to Washington, and since we don\u2019t know, it\u2019s difficult to know how to prevent further introductions into North America,\u201d said Tewksbury.<\/p>\n
Although she said that Rhode Islanders need not be concerned about murder hornets, she advises residents to keep their eyes out for any unusual insect they\u2019ve never seen before, since non-native insects do occasionally arrive in the region.<\/p>\n