Asian Giant Hornets Kill 42 People In China, Injure Over 1,500

Hugh Pickens DOT Com writes "Madison Park and Dayu Zhang report on CNN that swarms of aggressive hornets are inflicting a deadly toll in a central China killing 42 people and injuring 1,675 people in three cities in Shaanxi province since July. Government authorities say these attacks are from a particularly venomous species, the world's largest hornet, known as the Asian giant hornet or vespa mandarinia. The giant hornet extends about 3.5 to 3.9 centimeters in length, roughly the size of a human thumb and has an orange head with a black tooth used for burrowing. The Asian giant hornet is intensely predatory; it hunts medium- to large-sized insects, such as bees, other hornet species, and mantises. The pain of the Asian Giant Hornet is described as a hot nail piercing the skin and lasts about 4 hours with instant swelling. One victim told local media earlier this month that "the more you run, the more they want to chase you." Some victims described being chased about 200 meters (656 feet) by a swarm. Local authorities have deployed thousands of police officers and locals to destroy about 710 hives but ""It's very difficult to prevent the attacks because hornet nests are usually in hidden sites," says Shunichi Makino, director general of the Hokkaido Research Center for Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute. Makino, who specializes in entomology, warned that the sting from an Asian giant hornet was severe compared with those of other insects. "The venom of an Asian giant hornet is very special compared with other hornets or yellow jackets," says Makino. "The neurotoxin — especially to mammals including humans — it's a special brand of venom." Asian Giant Hornets have been spotted in the United States."

Comments

The Oatmeal

[Kinthelt]

Sounds like the same kind of hornets that Matt Inman ran into. http://theoatmeal.com/comics/running5

Re:Numbers are less sensational

[HockeyPuck]

You are five times more likely to be killed by a car than you are to get STUNG by one of these things, assuming you are in China.

Only five times? As someone that just got back from Beijing, I'm surprised I wasn't killed in a traffic accident. Crossing the street is taking your life in your own hands and a taxi cab will turn any atheist into a devout believer.

There's that old saying about there are no atheists in fox holes... well, hop in a Beijing cab and you too will pray for a safe passage. And yes these are the official taxis not the unlicensed ones.

Re:At least they died doing what they love.

[Anonymous Coward]

Here is an interesting biology fact: The chemical that give banana's the majority of their taste, Isoamyl acetate, is the same chemical bees use to alert each other to danger. That is why bees hate bananas and make simple chemistry fun. It also makes bee traps much more effective if put by the entrance.

Re:The best defense

[GoodNewsJimDotCom]

You're right. I actually use a vacuum cleaner to kill wasps and bees in my room. The best part is you can approach them with the tube casually. If you use a fly swatter and miss, they get pissed real quick. Also a fly swatter needs to have them on a solid object to hurt them because wasps have a bit more structural integrity than a fly. So yes vacuum cleaners are good for indoor wasp/bee killing.