Vespa mandarinia

Vespa (medical pests) • Vespidae (medical) • Hymenoptera (medical) • veterinary/medical pests • pests-diseases-weeds

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Vespa mandarinia (click on image to enlarge it)
Author(s): Gary Alpert
Source: Wikimedia Commons

Vespa mandarinia japonica (click on image to enlarge it)
Author(s): Yasunori Koide
Source: Wikimedia Commons

Vespa mandarinia Smith, 1852 - (Asian giant hornet, Japanese giant hornet)

This is a large species of hornet with a typical length of 30-40 mm for workers. It is found in southern and eastern Asia and has been described as a medical pest as well as a predator of honey bees. The hornet uses underground nests, which are often build around rotting roots. Stings can be lethal to humans and there are on average 30-40 deaths per year in Japan alone.

During 2019, V. mandarinia was recorded in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada as well as in northern Washington State, U.S., raising concern about the species establishing in north-western North America-

For research on the invasion risk of this species in North America, see Alaniz et al. (2021).