‘Murder Hornets’: The Effect They Pose on the Declining Bee Population

Asian giant hornets, also known as Murder Hornets, are not like any other flying insect seen ever before in the United States. These hornets are not only known for their large size, but for their powerful sting. There have been four sightings of these scary looking insects in the United States. The Washington State Department of Agriculture has been quick to act, as they have been attempting to set up traps to locate and destroy their hives. The main concern is that if the hornets are not destroyed immediately after the first few sightings, it might be impossible to eliminate them entirely.

Many researchers have said that they are not a danger to people, as studies show that more people die from honey bee stings in the United States than by the giant hornet stings in Japan per year. The giant hornets are only a danger to humans if they feel threatened in the same way that honey bees attack when agitated. However, in 2013, in rural China, a swarm of Asian giant hornets killed 42 people and injured about 1,600.

Regarding its deadly stinger, researchers have described the feeling of being stung by an Asian giant hornet as “having a hot nail driven into one’s flesh”. The greatest concern when it comes to these murder hornets is the fact that they can wipe out an entire hive of honey bees. For anyone who is not a fan of honey bees, this might sound like good news, but in actuality, the death of a large number of honey bees is catastrophic - and not because there will be no more honey. Without bees, feeding the 7 billion people on the planet will become very difficult. Bees help with pollination, but it is not widely known that bees actually help produce 70% of the fruits, vegetables, and nuts that we consume. The 70% is accomplished by commercial bees that are sent to farms to pollinate crops. If, for instance, the bee population decreases, there will be fewer almonds and thus fewer livestock, as almonds are used to feed livestock. If the number of livestock decreases, then there will be, of course, no meat, dairy, or eggs, affecting much of the food production process. With the extinction of bees, the human diet will generally consist of corn, rice, and wheat. Additionally, the amount of cotton will also face a decline as a result of a decrease in the bee population. Furthermore, this would put the economy of the entire world in grave danger.

To put all this in simpler terms, a life without bees would be substantially different from the comfortable life that most of us have grown accustomed to. With ⅓ of the bee population mysteriously decreasing and the murder hornets main prey being bees, it is likely that bees could go extinct if murder hornets take over.

While this is unlikely, the next time you think about killing a bee, just think about what it would be like to have all the things necessary to your everyday life taken away from you.

Source: New York Times