Asian Hornet Invasion: First "Murder Hornet" of 2021 Discovered in Washington State

Officials in Washington state have verified their second "murder hornet" sighting of 2021 - the first sighting of a live one.

The first report of a live Asian giant hornet in Washington this year has been confirmed, according to a statement published by the Washington state department of agriculture (WSDA).

A Whatcom County resident reported the sighting on Wednesday, roughly two miles from where the WSDA destroyed the first Asian giant hornet nest discovered in the US last October.

Scientists discovered a dead hornet north of Seattle two months ago, marking the first murder hornet identified in the United States this year.

Hornet Invasion

Following the sighting on Wednesday, the WSDA said that traps would be put in the vicinity in the hopes of catching a live hornet, tagging it, and tracking it back to its nest.

The British Columbia authorities will follow suit because the sighting occurred about half a mile from the US-Canadian border.

"They're rare and far between because they're an apex predator. And the fact that their nests are sometimes subterranean doesn't help matters," says British Columbia's top beekeeper, Dr. Paul van Westendorp.

Biologists attempted to exterminate the intruders, but new evidence suggests that the hornets survived the winter. Two queens were previously discovered in Washington State. According to the state's agriculture agency, one had already mated.

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