Asian Giant Hornet

Vespa mandarinia

The heaviest shadow over a beehive

The Asian Giant Hornet is the largest hornet in the world, with stout, sickle-shaped jaws (mandibles) capable of shearing through a victim’s head and thorax in a single bite. A raid by several dozen worker hornets can wipe out an entire honeybee colony within hours, making it one of the bees’ deadliest predators.

Key figures

Length

Queens can reach 45–50 mm, the largest of any hornet species

Life cycle

One colony cycle per year; the queen overwinters alone and founds a new colony in spring

Habitat

Low mountains and hill forests; nests are usually built underground or in tree hollows

Diet

Adults prey on other wasps and large insects, and also feed on tree sap and ripe fruit

Group Hunting

Several dozen worker hornets acting together can destroy an entire honeybee colony within hours

Sting

The stinger is long and can be used repeatedly, injecting far more venom than an ordinary wasp

Life cycle

Egg → Larva → Pupa → Adult (queen / worker / male)

Ecological role

The Asian Giant Hornet is among the largest predatory insects in the forest. Group raids on honeybees and other social wasps can sharply reduce colony numbers, posing a real threat to beekeeping.

Did you know

When attacked, Japanese honeybees swarm the intruder and vibrate their wings violently, raising the temperature at the center of the ball to nearly 45°C — hot enough to cook the hornet alive.

Range

Temperate to subtropical East Asia, including China, Japan, the Korean Peninsula, and northern India; now invasive in the Pacific Northwest of North America

Status

Common in its native range; listed as an invasive species and targeted for eradication in North America since 2019

Anatomy

• Mandibles — Large and sickle-shaped, used to shear through a honeybee’s head and thorax in an instant while hunting
• Stinger — Smooth and barbless, so it can sting repeatedly while injecting a large amount of venom
• Wings — Beat at a high frequency, letting it reach flight speeds of about 40 km/h while chasing prey
• Compound Eyes — Working together with the simple eyes (ocelli), they let it track prey movement even in dim forest light
• Antennae — Densely packed with scent receptors, used to locate nests and prey by smell
• Slender Waist — A narrow waist (petiole) connects the thorax and abdomen, giving it the flexibility to twist sharply during aerial combat

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