Researchers ID Sex Pheromone of Invasive Giant Hornet

Chemicals used as bait to trap and track so-called -murder hornets- as they expand their footprint in the Western United States. The world's largest hornet has been the focus of extensive news coverage of late due to its menacing appearance and expanding footprint in North America. But while the "murder hornet" label attached to the Asian giant hornet ( Vespa mandarinia ) may be an overdramatization of its danger, researchers agree that the invasive species is destructive and threatens North American bee populations and millions of dollars in crop production. Because honey bees offer few defenses ( other than a "heat ball" defense seen in this video), giant hornets can rapidly destroy entire bee colonies. "My usual plea is that people should stop calling them 'murder hornets' because they are large and perhaps frightening but not truly murderous," said James Nieh, a Division of Biological Sciences professor and bee researcher at the University of California San Diego. "They are amazing social insects, but they don't belong in North America and harm our critical bee populations, so we should remove them." But how to eliminate them is not clear. Even knowing where they occur—thus far reported in Canada and the Pacific Northwest—has been difficult to determine. As one possible solution, Nieh his colleagues in China have developed a method for identifying the Asian giant hornet's presence and possibly accelerating its removal.