![]() The highest diversity occurs in the region between North Africa and Central Asia. Twenty-one species worldwide are recognized. They are so named because they hunt cicadas and provision their nests with them, after stinging and paralyzing them. Cicada killers “are just a large species of wasp here in Florida that are commonly misidentified as Asian giant hornets. Cicada killer wasps (genus Sphecius) are large, solitary, ground-dwelling, predatory wasps. “They’re more likely cicada killers,” said Franco Ripple, spokesman for the state agency. Some of them worried they had witnessed a murder hornet on the loose in the Sunshine State. Since the news of the murder hornet’s arrival in the U.S., more than 100 Florida residents have contacted the state Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services with questions, sightings and photos of wasps on windshields. ![]() ![]() Male Eastern Cicada-killer wasps are known for their curiosity, particularly towards perceived dangers surrounding the female wasp. Males can’t sting but they appear aggressive in behavior. But their sting isn’t as painful as the sting of other wasps. In some places, they also are considered a tasty treat as snacks and in drinks. Female Eastern Cicada-killer Wasps can sting. The New York Times reports that the hornets kill up to 50 people a year in Japan. Although they are actually Asian giant hornets, murder hornets earned the name for their ability to behead honeybees, an entire hive of them, raising worries they could decimate entire colonies of the uber-important pollinators.įun fact: Murder hornets, the world’s largest hornets, sport a stinger capable of piercing a beekeeper’s suit. Reports of murder hornets showing up in Washington state made for unnerving news in an already-unsettling year. Here’s some good news for Floridians: If you see a similarly-large, winged thing buzzing about your yard, it likely is not a murder hornet, according to those in the know.
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