At lunch one day this week, one of my amazing students asked, "What is that large bug buzzing around?" While the students stayed at a safe distance, I followed it and captured in a large plastic cup. It was HUGE -- almost 2" long! I was ready to call the authorities and report that we had found a murder hornet when I did my research and found that it was actually a European hornet, similar, but not near as exciting. (The European hornets have black tear drops on the yellow stripes on their abdomens, while murder hornets do not.)
The night before, my son, whose new job is wasp and hornet removal, brought this home for me. It was a giant four-layered hornet's nest! These are called bald-faced or black and white hornets, and they are related to yellow jackets. The nest was absolutely amazing. We examined the hornets, the larvae, the nest, and the ants who were happily eating the dead larvae. More gross.
