Texas Gov. Greg Abbott requested Texas A&M AgriLife set up the group to prevent the Asian giant hornet from settling in his state.
According to the university, the task force will bring together expertise in agriculture, entomology and homeland security to educate the public, monitor possible ports of entry and assist with mitigation efforts to protect the state's honeybees. It will also draw up identification plans"if necessary."
Stock image: Asian giant hornets make its nest on a tree trunk. A “murder hornet” task force is being led by Texas A&M AgriLife at the request of Texas Governor Greg Abott.As of yet, the only confirmed sightings in the U.S. have been in Blaine, Washington, approximately 1,800 miles from El Paso. The species has also been identified in British Columbia, Canada.
Greg Pompelli, director of the Center for Cross-Border Threat Screening and Supply Chain Defense, said Customs and Border Protection staff are being trained to detect the Asian giant hornet. While the species is known to deliver a painful sting and has been linked to 30 to 50 deaths in Japan each year, predominantly from allergic reactions, the prevailing risk is the threat the hornet poses to honeybees.
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