The Asian giant hornet is the largest hornet in the world. If he sits on his hand, then his wings completely cover the palm, and the distance from the head to the end of the abdomen is quite consistent with the length of the little finger of an adult. It is not surprising that in Japan this wasp is called the "sparrow bee": during the flight, the insect very much resembles a small bird.
We can say with confidence that there is a connection between the size of the body of this giant and the severity of the consequences of meeting him: how big is the largest hornet, just as dangerous is it. Even a person who is not distinguished by hypersensitivity to insect venom may well die from his bites. Therefore, entomologists rightly consider the giant hornet one of the most dangerous insects in the world.
On a note
According to statistics, only in Japan as a result of the bites of giant hornets, from 40 to 50 people die every year. Similar data are given for individual districts of China, where relevant records are kept. In Japan, even sharks are not the cause of death for so many people.
Among other things, a huge hornet is a real scourge of many beekeeping farms. You have to deal with it with extreme caution because of the serious danger of being stung.
The relationship of a large hornet with a person has never been simple, and an increased interest in him is often caused by a simple desire to tickle his nerves. Well, let's tickle...
What does one of the largest wasps look like?
Giant hornets are large insects with a characteristic appearance for all wasps. Systematically, they belong to the Real wasps family, which also includes the well-known and widespread paper wasps around the world.
In science, the largest hornet is called Vespa Mandarinia, and this species itself is divided into several subspecies that differ from each other in some anatomical features and habitats.
So, for example, the Japanese huge hornet subspecies well-known in scientific circles (Vespa mandarinia japonica - its Latin name) lives only on the Japanese Islands, the Kuril Islands and the south of Sakhalin. Outwardly, it is difficult to distinguish it from a representative of the main species, but this insect cannot be found on the mainland - it is endemic.
The body length of this hornet is 4.5-5 cm, but in some populations it is sometimes possible to meet especially large individuals - up to 5.5 cm. Inside the family, its members differ little in size: the uterus and working hornets are approximately the same.
The largest hornet also boasts a wingspan of up to 7 cm. At the same time, the color of the giant hornet is quite simple and characteristic of all wasps: a yellow body streaked with transverse black stripes, a brown base of the abdomen, a black cephalothorax and a yellow head.
But a very interesting and exceptional feature of these insects is that the largest hornets in the world have three additional eyes between the two main ones. Upon closer examination, it may even seem that this is not an insect, but a small robot, since five eyes are an extremely unusual sight for a person.
Below is a photo of the largest hornet. Additional eyes are clearly visible on his head:
It is interesting
Hornets are easily confused with scoli. These are large wasps leading a solitary lifestyle. Representatives of the largest species of scolias exceed the size of even the huge Asian hornets and reach a length of 6 cm. The simplest difference between scolias and hornets is their color. The former usually have a black body color, rarely with a metallic blue tint, and the latter are never black.
Giant Hornet Danger
Giant hornets are extremely dangerous. The impressive size allows these insects to have a long sting - up to 6 mm, thanks to which, in one bite, they are able to inject a much larger dose of poison into the wound than ordinary hornets.
In addition, a huge hornet angry or protecting a nest can use its sting several times in one attack, and therefore, as a result, such multiple stings become equivalent to the bites of 5-6 of its European relatives.
The venom of the giant hornet causes acute throbbing pain and leads to almost instantaneous edema, followed by inflammation of the tissues. Parallel to the main symptoms, the victim may develop headaches and shortness of breath, as well as rapid heartbeat.
Review
“A tiger bee stung me when I was working on a farm. The bite was on the leg, under the knee. At first I was afraid that it was some kind of snake, because it was very painful, but then I saw a bee, and immediately fell into the water.The leg quickly swelled up and I couldn't bend it, but worst of all was the pain. I literally sat and screamed because there was nothing else I could do. Other workers helped me get on the motorcycle, and the boss took me to the hospital. There was already a huge hematoma at the site of the bite, and I was told that if I lingered, I could lose my leg. Only in the hospital they gave me an injection, from which the pain subsided a little. Two days after that, I had a high fever and fever."
Wagar Msahari, Balangir
Such a terrifying pain syndrome is explained by the fact that the largest hornets are the owners of the so-called mandorotoxin, a powerful poison that acts on the nervous system and contributes to the appearance of additional symptoms that spread throughout the body. However, the most dangerous thing in the bite of a giant hornet is not even hellish pain, but the allergic reaction that follows it.
The poison itself contains a large amount of histamine - a substance responsible for the rapid development of allergies. In addition to this, the components included in the hornet venom stimulate the release of their own histamine by tissue cells that were directly stung and began to swell.
The standard human response to a giant hornet sting is widespread inflammation, redness and hardening of tissues, swollen lymph nodes, and fever. If the victim is particularly sensitive to insect poisons, after being bitten by the world's largest hornet, he may develop anaphylactic shock.
In this most life-threatening situation, the countdown goes not to hours, but to minutes. If the victim is not taken to the hospital in time, the probability of death is very high.
Review
“Several times a year, local residents who have been bitten by Vespa Mandarinia are admitted to our hospital. This year there were already two, last year - four people. One of those four died because the hornets bit his neck, and because of the swelling, he could not breathe. He was brought to the hospital already in a state of clinical death, and we were never able to start the work of the heart after asphyxia.
To Nga, Maoming
Lifestyle and habitats of giant hornets
The largest hornets lead the same lifestyle as their other relatives. They live mainly in forests, keep close enough to water sources. For reproduction, the female begins to build a nest, in the first combs of which she lays eggs, and then grows the working hornets that have come out of them.
After her duties are reduced only to the continuous laying of eggs, and all work in the nest falls on the shoulders of workers.
Hornets build their nests from young tree bark, which, when chewed, is turned into a parchment-like mass.
Outwardly, the nest resembles a huge light gray fruit, the height of which can reach 70-80 cm, and the width - up to half a meter. Hornets can place their dwellings either openly, hanging them from tree branches, or hidden from prying eyes in hollows, caves and burrows.
Once a year, a large number of females and males appear in the nest. In conditions of severe overpopulation, they fly out of the nest, swarm and mate. After that, the females go to look for places for new, already their own, nests, and the males die.
A little about predatory habits
Like all other hornets, Asian giants are active predators.They feed and feed their offspring mainly on animal food, most often on other arthropods. These huge predators do not disdain their relatives, which are more modest in size.
The status of "the largest hornet in the world" is fully justified by this insect: attacks on the nests of other, smaller species of hornets are very common. At the same time, the giants completely destroy the dwellings of their relatives and destroy all working individuals and larvae.
Especially often, giant hornets attack bees, preying not only on the owners of the hive, but also on their honey (adult hornets are very fond of sweets). 30-40 hornets can completely exterminate a bee family of 20-30 thousand bees in a few hours.
As you can see, the forces during such an attack are unequal, so the beekeepers of China and Japan are very actively destroying the nests of giant hornets and are trying with all their might to scare them away from the apiaries.
What to do if stung by a giant hornet
The largest hornet in the world can easily meet you on vacation in China, Nepal, India, Malaysia or Japan. It is worth noting that, even without leaving your country, you can also come across a giant hornet: it inhabits Primorye in sufficient numbers.
There is one recommendation that allows you to remain safe and sound when meeting with a huge insect: you should not make sudden movements and wave your arms. In relation to a person, a giant hornet is peaceful and will never attack first without a special reason.
Usually the cause of the attack is a person's attempt to catch an insect or photograph it close, and you should not be surprised at all if a hornet attacks when trying to "examine" its nest.
In order to avoid various unpleasant consequences, you just need to move away from the place where the hornet was seen - this will be the best option.
Nevertheless, let's define an algorithm for helping the victim if the bite did occur.
- You should immediately apply cold to the affected area, and preferably wet sugar. This will slow down the spread of the poison through the tissues.
- If possible, it is necessary to give the stung injection of an antihistamine agent - Suprastin or Diphenhydramine as soon as possible (adrenaline injection will be optimal).
- After this, the person must be laid so that his head is not raised. Do not forget all the time to carefully monitor the appearance of symptoms of an allergic reaction!
- With the rapid spread of edema, the appearance of asthmatic breathing, an increase in the temperature of the victim, you must immediately take him to the hospital, if necessary, do artificial respiration along the way.
In most cases, giant hornet bites still happen due to human negligence. With reasonable behavior and proper observation, this large insect can always be seen before it senses danger and retreat. This will be the optimal outcome of a meeting of a reasonable person with the largest hornet in the world.
Interesting video: Asian hornets attack a beehive
Giant hornet in human hands
And in this video you can clearly see the powerful jaws of a giant hornet
On the contrary, there is less scoli.