A suspected giant northern hornet carcass was found in South Kitsap and reported to the state Department of Agriculture this month.

In 2020, amid the fear and uncertainty surrounding COVID, a new threat was said to have been found in the appearance of what have been called “murder hornets.” Though they are primarily a danger to honey bee populations and certain crops like apples, blueberries and grapes, they can be dangerous to people if frenzied near their nests.

“They can wipe out an entire honey bee hive in a couple of hours,” said Karla Salp, WSDA communications consultant. “And that’s just a few hornets…that’s their primary danger, though they will attack ripe fruit and eat it as well because the adult hornets feed on carbohydrates. But there’s also the danger to workers themselves, if you’re out working in an orchard, vineyard or blueberry patch and disturb them, they can sting you.” Salp said that the sting is very painful and that, like bees and other stinging insects, some people are allergic to them.

She said that the WSDA cannot yet confirm that the hornet found is a northern giant hornet, however. “We have to have the actual specimen so that we can DNA test it,” she said. “We don’t know how these hornets are getting here. We have the Whatcom County one found in 2020, we had one in the Marysville area in Snohomish County later, but the DNA analysis showed it wasn’t related.”

The report of the hornet was enough for the WSDA to set lure and kill traps in the area to see if specimens could be collected. “We encourage people to submit public reports because half of our confirmed sightings of northern giant hornets are public reports,” Salp said. The traps are not attractive to the insect as they are not species-specific. “So those public sightings are just as good, if not better than the traps.”

If the hornet is proved to be an invasive species, a rapid response will include live traps, which will allow WSDA to tag the insect and then follow it to its nest where they can be eradicated. “We’re hopeful that we’ll be able to collect the hornet that was found and then conduct testing to see where we go from there,” Salp said. She also said the USDA is working with the WSDA to monitor and eradicate the hornet.

If you see a northern giant hornet, the WSDA asks that you send a photograph by going to www.agr.wa.gov/hornets. You can also email them at pest@agr.wa.gov