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After the commotion caused, primarily on social media, by the revelation that Asian giant wasps, nicknamed “killer wasps,” were found in the United States for the first time, entomologists point out that they may be dangerous to humans, but they generally do not attack if they are not disturbed.
Asian ‘Killer Wasps’ First Found in the US USA
The insect’s greatest threat, which can measure up to 5 centimeters, is to bee communities, which have no defense mechanisms against them and are their main target. According to Sven-Erik Spichiger, an entomologist at the Washington State Department of Agriculture, only a few giant Asiatia wasps can exterminate a healthy hive in a few hours.
/i.s3.gl009009H004A04Q04Q04A04A04A04A08A04A04A04A4 -rc2xhg9tl9ye-rtrmadp-3-usa-hornets.jpg "Entomologist Chris Looney of the Washington State Department of Agriculture shows a giant Asian wasp, caught near Blaine, on April 23 - Photo: Karla Salp / Washington State Department of Agriculture / Brochure via Reuters")
Entomologist Chris Looney of the Washington State Department of Agriculture shows a giant Asian wasp, caught in a trap near Blaine, on April 23 – Photo: Karla Salp / Washington State Department of Agriculture / Flyer via Reuters
But Chris Looney, another entomologist in the same Washington department of agriculture, who is looking for wasps, told the Associated Press on Thursday that people in the United States should avoid panic. “The number of people who are bitten and need to seek medical attention is incredibly small.” According to him, these insects do not chase people.
Looney also says that Asian giant wasps are not even “killers”.
Also according to the AP, experts say only two wasps of the type, already dead, were found in Washington in December 2019, and only one live nest was found and annihilated in September in Canada. This year, no insects of the species have yet been found.
Entomologist Chris Looney of the Washington State Department of Agriculture is seen with a giant Asian wasp, caught near Blaine, on April 23 – Photo: Karla Salp / Washington State Department of Agriculture / Flyer via Reuters
Looney, however, appears in photos of insects caught in a trap near Blaine, Washington, on April 23 (see above).
Other entomologists heard by the news agency were outraged by the nickname.
Doug Tallamy of the University of Delaware complained: “This is a 99% media promotion and frankly I’m getting tired of it. Killer wasp? Please”.
By email, bee expert Jerry Bromenshenk, retired from the University of Montana, was more subdued, but also complained. “A nest, a wasp, we hope, does not cause an invasion … do we want this wasp? Certainly not. But media promotion is extremely exaggerated. ”
