Provincial apiculturist Paul van Westendorp holding an Asian giant hornet on Sept. 19, 2019, the morning after the first ever nest of the invasive species was found in North America.  (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Ian Holmes

buzz off

Asian giant hornet sightings evade widespread monitoring effort

Sep 26, 2020 | 7:38 AM

NANAIMO — Fears have eased about an invasive honey bee-killing insect making B.C.’s south coast and the pacific northwest a permanent home.

Provincial apiculturist Paul van Westendorp reported no new confirmed Asian giant hornet sightings in British Columbia this year after a flurry of activity on mid Vancouver Island and the western Fraser Valley last year.

“It’s been a bit frustrating we haven’t been able to catch, or find, or trap any additional specimens of this particular hornet,” van Westendorp told NanaimoNewsNOW.

Van westendorp said none of the few invasive hornets found in the Lower Mainland and Washington state since last year were associated with a nest, which was the case in Nanaimo on Sept. 18, 2019.

He said the adaptable predatory insect could thrive regionally but differences in habitat and food availability are key potential barriers.

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“It’s the largest hornet in the world and as any apex predator in any ecosystem there are only very few of them around,” van Westendorp said. “Even if it establishes successfully there will only ever be very few of them.”

He said the Ministry of Agriculture will continue to closely monitor for signs of the insect through the end of 2022.

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Van Westendorp said DNA samples from a specimen found off a trail in Nanaimo indicated it was from Japan, while a sample from Blaine, Wash. was believed to be a South Korean-based Asian giant hornet.

Asian giant hornets are large in size and have noticeably large orange heads and black eyes. Worker hornets are approximately 3.5 cm in length and queens can be up to 4 to 5 cm in length with a wingspan of 4 to 7 cm.

Moufida Holubeshen of the Nanaimo Bee Keepers Club said she and her husband have responded to numerous inquiries from people who took pictures of what they think could be the insect.

“People have been sharing with us what they saw and try to get clarification and reassurance that this is not going to hurt them,” she said.

Holubeshen’s husband John, who suffered an Asian giant hornet sting while destroying its Nanaimo nest, said awareness of the invasive pest is up due to widespread media coverage.

He viewed a New York Times article earlier this year with “murder hornets” in the headline as a double-edged sword, which raised awareness but also elevated fears.

Asian giant hornets strictly devour other insects and won’t target humans unless provoked.

ian@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @reporterholmes