Bees Scream When Murder Hornet Cousins Attack

Live Science

Asian honey bees rally against giant hornet invasions with an acoustic response that resembles the alarm shrieks of birds, primates and other social mammals.

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00:00When giant cousins of murder hornets attack Asian honeybees, the bees raise an alarm similar

00:10to the panicked calls of birds and mammals. Giant hornets are a sister species, two so-called

00:17murder hornets. They're one of the deadliest predators of Asian honeybees, attacking in

00:22groups until they overwhelm a colony. Scientists recently recorded and analyzed alarm sounds

00:28made by honeybees during hornet attacks. They found that when a giant hornet shows up, the

00:43bees made a lot more noise.

01:13Giant hornets are the biggest threat to Asian honeybees. Just one attack can wipe out an

01:21entire colony. This could explain why bees have evolved to have a special signal for a

01:27giant hornet attack.

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