Resource Search

In early December Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) Police received information that a Seattle market was selling live “green crabs”. The Seattle seller had bought the live green crabs from a seller in Massachusetts with the intention of selling them for crab stock and soup. The crabs were destroyed by WDFW Police officers.

View past news releases, blogs, and Pest Program updates about Asian giant hornet.

The Northern Giant Hornet Public Dashboard shares detection and trapping data. Citizen scientists were able to view detections in real time, including the number of reported sightings and number of hornets confirmed by type. Coordinating this information provided input on future trapping and demonstrated the benefit of collaboration with citizen scientists. WSDA has indicated that citizen data sharing and bottle trapping efforts are crucial to protect Washington from this invasive species.

King County's Best Management Practices (BMP's) help landowners control weeds using a variety of options that consider characteristics of the site and keep negative side effects to a minimum. The Noxious Weed Control Program follows county guidelines of Integrated Pest Management (IPM). The goal is to maximize effective control and to minimize environmental, economic and social damage.

The species listed are known to be present or have the potential to infest Thurston County. It is approved and updated annually by the Thurston County Weed Board.

Asian giant hornet is the world's largest species of hornet. In December 2019, WSDA received and verified four reports of Asian giant hornet near Blaine and Bellingham. These are the first-ever sighting in the U.S. Canada had also discovered Asian giant hornet in two locations in British Columbia in the fall of 2019. If it becomes established, this hornet will have serious negative impacts on the environment, economy, and public health of Washington State. If you think you may have spotted an Asian giant hornet, report it to WSDA's Pest Program and, if possible, include a photo.
See also: Learn more about Asian giant hornets and WSDA’s program to eradicate them.

To help combat the $1.3 billion threat invasive species pose to Washington's economy every year, the Washington Invasive Species Council is inviting the public to the frontlines of its work by detecting invasive species and reporting them on its newly improved WA Invasives app. The free app enables anyone to report a plant or animal by collecting photographs, geographic coordinates, and sighting information. Users recreating in the backcountry also can collect data offline, when cellular service isn't available. The app also acts as digital field guide.

See also: Weed I.D. and Options for Control for more species

Entomologists from the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) have confirmed the first report of an Asian giant hornet for 2021. This is the first confirmed report from Snohomish County and appears to be unrelated to the 2019/2020 Asian giant hornet introductions in Canada and Whatcom County.

In 2020, half of the confirmed Asian giant hornet sightings in Washington and all of the confirmed sightings in Canada came from the public. Every suspected sighting in Washington State should be reported to the Washington State Department of Agriculture online at agr.wa.gov/hornets, by emailing hornets@agr.wa.gov, or calling 1-800-443-6684. Suspected sightings in other areas should be reported to the state or province where it suspected hornet was observed.

The dynamic story map will be updated with new developments as they happen. 

Tribal, state and local governments will join forces at Lake Roosevelt this week to combat the spread of northern pike, recently recorded just two dams away from critical Columbia River salmon habitat. “We are at a critical moment in time where northern pike have not spread into salmon habitat,” said Kelly Susewind, director of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. “If northern pike move downstream, the State of Washington will consider this an environmental emergency. We need to work together to stop northern pike.”

On May 29, the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) reported the first confirmed sighting of an Asian giant hornet in Washington this year. On May 27, a resident near Custer, Wash. found the dead specimen while walking on a roadway. The resident submitted a photo and report using WSDA's online Hornet Watch Report Form. On May 28, WSDA entomologists concluded that the photo appeared to show an Asian giant hornet. The hornet was detected near the location of a suspected Asian giant hornet bee kill in 2019. WSDA had already planned trapping in the area and will maintain that plan to try to find any colony that may be there. The first find of the year in the United States comes just days after the British Columbian government confirmed their first detection of the year in Canada near Langley, B.C. That specimen was initially reported to authorities on May 15. Asian giant hornet is the world's largest hornet and a predator of honey bees and other insects. A small group of Asian giant hornets can kill an entire honey bee hive in a matter of hours. Visit agr.wa.gov/hornets to learn more about Asian giant hornets and the state's trapping and eradication project.

The Washington Invasive Species Council approved an updated statewide strategy to prevent invading plants and animals from taking hold in the state’s forests, waters and farms.

The strategy calls for a broad range of actions focusing on preventing new species from establishing here, educating the public and rapidly deploying when species are found to prevent their spread. The 5-year strategy (2020-2025) is available at Washington Invasive Species Council - Reports.