A “deadly” breed of hornets has swarmed into Georgia and officials are scrambling to stop the rapid increase in population before the insects wreak havoc on the state’s agriculture industry.
The wasp species — and close relative of the murder hornet — is an invasive species that originates from Southeast Asia and feasts on honeybees and other pollinators that drive Georgia’s agriculture industry, the state’s main economic source. “An ideal scenario would be the discovery and eradication of every established nest before the colonies have time to issue new queens who overwinter and start the life cycle over again next spring.”Georgia Department of Agriculture
Since then, officials have discovered and immediately destroyed at least two nests — each of which typically houses up to 6,000 workers — both on Wilmington Island, a community 10 miles east of Savannah.