Asian Giant Nest By The Numbers

The Washington state Department of Agriculture is learning more and more about the Asian Giant hornet nest discovered near Blaine. The nest was just over eight feet high in the tree and, once opened, was found to be about 14" long and 8"-9" wide. Inside, WSDA crews found roughly 500 live specimens, including 76 hatched queens. WSDA Entomologist Sven Spichiger believes there are other nests.

“When you see a relatively small nest like this capable of 200 queens, it does give one a little bit of pause because each of those queens could be a new one next year.”

WSDA also found six layers of comb, resulting in nearly 800 individual cells, 190 total larvae, 112 workers as well as nine drones, which are male hornets that generally emerge from the nest before the new queens emerge.

WSDA will continue trapping the "murder hornet" through at least Thanksgiving and possibly beyond. The Pest Program still hopes to eradicate Asian giant hornets from the Pacific Northwest in cooperation with their Canadian counterparts.

If you think you’ve seen an Asian giant hornet in Washington, report it to the WSDA by taking a picture, and submitting it to WSDA's Website, or E-mailing the picture. You can also call the WSDA at (800) 443-6684 for more information.

If you have a story idea for the PNW Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail gvaagen@cherrycreekmedia.com