Weve had hundreds of photos sent in by people in Texas, said Ragsdale.
Once or twice, theyve even received photoshopped or misrepresented pictures of the hornet from outside of the U.S.
The same seems to be true for North Carolina and other areas of the Eastern U.S.
A pest biologist from the Washington State Department of Agriculture holds a dead Asian giant hornet on July 29, 2020 in Bellingham, Washington.Photo: Karen Ducey (Getty Images)
I cant say whats going on out in the West.
And thats logical, because its a very close relative.
For one, most people can barely distinguish a cockroach from a bedbug.
The biggest thing people latch on to is the size.
So its not just European hornets.
Were also getting other large wasps and even large flies submitted, Bertone noted.
The other reason is more psychological.
Murder hornets are a fearsome-sounding creature, and theyre new.
I completely sympathize, having had my own bouts of bug paranoia after writingthis articleon cockroaches and bedbugs.
That said, the invasion of the Asian giant hornet is a real concern.
Thats a scenario that could repeat itself elsewhere.
That could be a sign that theyre already adapting to North America in unexpected ways.
I mean, thats the thing about invasive insects.
You may think that they behave one way because youre observing them in their native habitat.
When you put them in a novel environment, they may behave differently, he said.
And thats something that drives entomologists nuts, because they arent going to bother you.
And theyre usually doing a pretty good service for you, Ragsdale said.
But theres not too many entomologists out there.
Most people are not bug lovers.
Sometimes reports from the public really do pay off.
News from the future, delivered to your present.
