Japanese honey bees have a remarkable defense strategy against these things. From the Wikipedia page for Asian giant hornet [1]:<p>> As the hornet enters, a mob of hundreds of bees surrounds it in a ball, completely covering it and preventing it from reacting effectively. The bees violently vibrate their flight muscles in much the same way as they do to heat the hive in cold conditions. This raises the temperature in the ball to the critical temperature of 46 °C (115 °F). In addition, the exertions of the honeybees raise the level of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the ball. At that concentration of CO2, they can tolerate up to 50 °C (122 °F), but the hornet cannot survive the combination of high temperature and high carbon dioxide level. Some bees do die along with the intruder, much as happens when they attack other intruders with their stings, but by killing the hornet scout, they prevent it from summoning reinforcements that would wipe out the entire colony.<p>[1] <a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asian_giant_hornet" rel="nofollow">https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asian_giant_hornet</a>
They should enlist dragonflies. A few years ago I was chased by this type of hornet in rural Japan and was saved by a dragonfly that intercepted it in a dramatic takedown.
Now this makes me wonder what kind of wasp I’ve seen attacking bees in my garden in Sweden.<p>A very large wasp, I thought 2” in length, with the classic black and yellow stripes. I had assumed it was solitary. I’ve seen them hovering near the entrance of a wild hive and swooping on bees as they land and start to crawl in. The bee and wasp then tumble down to the ground, and there’s a struggle. Then the bee is released, and flies back to the hive. The wasp returns to hover by the entrance, awaiting its next victim.<p>These massive wasps will reappear this summer, as usual. I will have to try and identify them better. Anyone have any ideas?
I’ve never seen one of those (in NC) but I have seen the enormous Cicada Killer Wasp which is relatively harmless<p><a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphecius_speciosus" rel="nofollow">https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphecius_speciosus</a>
On the one hand it's obvious why they need to be eradicated given how disruptive they are to the ecosystem, but on the other hand it makes me a little sad, they're beautiful animals.
Scientists shouldn't encourage people to deal with a potentially lethal animal, and by the way, how a chinese giant hornet ended being introduced in Washington? Those things are unmistakable. Was nobody in charge?<p>Is nature boycott everywhere you look...