Asian giant hornets?

[sourland]

Are there any entomologists on board? Yesterday I saw a very large wasp/hornet capture, kill and eat a big bumble bee. This insect was in excess of 2" long. In coloration and size it did not appear to be an European hornet. Have Asian giant hornets been found in the US? I am located in New Jersey.

 

[bluesub]

Hi Sour,

Could it have been a Cicada Killer wasp?

http://wildflowers.jdcc.edu/Cicada_killer.html

I haven't seen one around here but I did see one when visiting relatives in South Dakota once, kind of freaked me out. They get about 2 inches long.

 

[sourland]

Might have been a Giant Cicada Killer, but my impression was that it had a larger head and more elongated abdomen. Whatever it was, it dispatched a LARGE bumble bee quite readily. I have seen cicada killers around here, but never this time of year.

 

[Kelsie2290]

Maybe the rather aptly named Bumble bee wolf? http://bugguide.net/node/view/38344/bgpage They're one of the Beewolves wasps that prey on bumble bees.

 

[sourland]

Thanks, Kelsie, that may very well be what I saw.

 

[RHRanch]

You should see the tarantula hawks we have out here! Huge! http://www.desertusa.com/insects/tarantula-hawks.html