Close X
Thursday, November 14, 2024
ADVT 
National

B.C., Washington team up against giant hornets

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 16 Mar, 2021 11:02 PM
  • B.C., Washington team up against giant hornets

Officials with the British Columbia and Washington state agriculture departments along with U.S. federal agencies are teaming up to trap, track and destroy invasive Asian giant hornets, which threaten honeybees.

The so-called murder hornets have been found on both sides of the border, in B.C.'s Fraser Valley, on Vancouver Island and in Blaine, Wash., where a nest containing nearly 200 queens was discovered and destroyed last year.

A full news conference on the governments' plans is set for Wednesday, but Washington's Agriculture Department says in a release it's preparing to bait and trap this year along with a strong emphasis on help from the public.

The release says the focus in Washington will be in Whatcom County, where Asian giant hornets were detected in 2019 and 2020, while B.C.'s surveillance program will include traps where hornets have been found.

The hornets are considered a serious honeybee predator with a large orange head, mandibles and a wingspan up to seven centimetres.

The statement says public reports have been crucial for locating the pests and both B.C. and Washington are urging residents to be on the lookout.

The hornet's life cycle begins in April when queens emerge from hibernation, to feed on sap and fruit and look for nesting grounds.

Washington is encouraging residents in several counties to participate in trapping starting in July using orange juice or a brown sugar-based bait.

MORE National ARTICLES

No need to lose sleep over shift to daylight saving time

No need to lose sleep over shift to daylight saving time
Don't forget to set your clocks an hour ahead, usually before bed Saturday night, to avoid being late for Sunday morning activities.    

No need to lose sleep over shift to daylight saving time

Expert says origins of pandemic could be known in few years

Expert says origins of pandemic could be known in few years
In a press briefing organized by the think-tank Chatham House in London, Peter Daszak estimated that collective scientific research might be able to pin down how animals carrying COVID-19 infected the first people in Wuhan identified last December.

Expert says origins of pandemic could be known in few years

RCMP investigating explosions in Penticton, B.C.

RCMP investigating explosions in Penticton, B.C.
Const. James Grandy says in a statement that the RCMP Explosive Disposal Unit will help investigate two confirmed explosions and other potential blasts. Grandy says police are investigating explosions on March 7 at a local soccer field and on March 8 on the grounds of Carmi Elementary School.

RCMP investigating explosions in Penticton, B.C.

BC hits second highest COVID19 case count

BC hits second highest COVID19 case count
Of the active cases, 255 individuals are currently hospitalized with COVID-19, 67 of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people with COVID-19 are recovering at home in self-isolation.

BC hits second highest COVID19 case count

No injuries after vandals loosen nuts on car tires

No injuries after vandals loosen nuts on car tires
Const. Gary O'Brien says the teen alerted his friends and may have averted a similar incident because a 17-year-old whose pickup was parked in the same lot received the message and before driving off, he found the lug nuts on a rear tire had also been loosened.

No injuries after vandals loosen nuts on car tires

Committee told of Chinese interference in vaccine

Committee told of Chinese interference in vaccine
The partnership was originally planned to be between China's CanSino Biologics and the Canadian Centre for Vaccinology at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia. CanSino had been given a licence by the National Research Council to use a Canadian biological product as part of a COVID-19 vaccine.

Committee told of Chinese interference in vaccine