Homecoming. Welcome the Asian Giant Hornet from the inside the nest. A large group of workers are coming back home a buzz with details of their foraging successes. YOU are here to greet them.
Vespa Mandarinia is large recent arrival in our area. It is large, with a wingspan of 3 inches and a body about 2 inches. Known in Japan as a “Giant Sparrow Bee” it has been popularly referred to here by the media as “Killer hornets” . They do kill honeybees when other sources of food are not readily available but they also eat insects, particularly beetles and mantises, and they gather nectar and sap. Living primarily in trees, they also make their nests near the ground in roots or tunnels for which their dark tooth and chin mandibles assist them in digging out. In this exhibition the dark tunnel has been raised to allow you to stand to see them arriving with the sap, insect bodies, and nectar they are bringing back to their nestmates.
Seen through the nest-like form, the swarm coming home evokes thoughts of the ‘labels’ we put on things we do not understand, our own status as an invasive species, and the sheer wonder about other creatures that share our world.
