Vespa mandarinia (lat.) - the largest hornet in the world, the length of the individual subspecies of this insect is more than 5 centimeters (on average - 50.8 millimeters), and its wingspan can exceed 7.5 centimeters. The main distinguishing feature is a very large head: the distance from the posterior edge of the eyes to the posterior edge of the head (temples) is several times longer than the width of the eye.
| Vespa mandarinia |
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| Scientific classification |
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| No rank : | Bilateral symmetric |
| Hoard : | Insects with full transformation |
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| International Scientific Name |
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Vespa mandarinia Smith , 1852 |
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Lives in Korea , China , Japan , Nepal , India , mountainous areas of Sri Lanka . In Russia, a large number of these hornets live in the Primorye Territory , in the south of the Khabarovsk Territory (the northernmost discovery is the Anyuy River ) and in the Jewish Autonomous Region [1] .
In Taiwan, it is called the "tiger bee." In Japan, the subspecies of this hornet (the Japanese huge hornet , which is endemic ) is called the "sparrow-bee", because of the huge span of its wings.
Vespa mandarinia on the hand of a man.
Vespa mandarinia have a sting length of almost 6 millimeters and produce a highly toxic poison , so sting this hornet is very dangerous - much more dangerous than other types of hornet. Poison produced quite a lot. The Japanese entomologist, Masato Ono, who had been stung by this insect, described it like this: “it’s as if a red-hot nail drove into my leg”. [2]
Hornet sting is deadly for those who are allergic to bee / wasp venom - the poison of this hornet has a complex chemical composition and contains the same substances that are found in aspen venom. When stinging a lot of hornets, a person who is not allergic can die, as the poison contains an extremely toxic substance (one of the neurotoxins is mandorotoxin ). In Japan, the stings of giant hornets annually kill up to forty people [3] .
In addition, the venom of this hornet contains many other toxic substances that destroy tissue, cause pain, and also attract other hornets. Attracts other hornet acetylcholine , which in the poison contains at least 5%.
For hunting, these hornets nevertheless use not a sting, but large jaws , which crush the victims. The sting of this hornet can be used many times, like an ordinary wasp .
