Oh, swell. Now there's something called a Murder Hornet. Does the DMV need to worry?

SPOKANE, Wash. — The world's largest hornet, a 2-inch killer dubbed the "Murder Hornet" with an appetite for honey bees, has been found in Washington state, where entomologists were making plans to wipe it out.

“They’re like something out of a monster cartoon with this huge yellow-orange face,” said Susan Cobey, a bee breeder at Washington State University.

“It’s a shockingly large hornet,” said Todd Murray, a WSU Extension entomologist and invasive species specialist.

It was sighted for the first time in the U.S. last December, when the state Department of Agriculture verified two reports near Blaine, Washington, close to the Canadian border. It also received two probable, but unconfirmed reports from sites in Custer, Washington, south of Blaine.

HOW DID THE 'MURDER HORNET' GET HERE?

The university said it isn't known how or where Asian Giant Hornet arrived in North America. They normally live in the forests and low mountains of eastern and southeast Asia and feeds on large insects, including wasps and bees.

Mike Raupp is a professor of entomology and an extension specialist at the University of Maryland.

"I think what happened, probably — and this is just speculation, we do not have this data — but very often what happens is these things will travel in container ships that are coming from Asia. I suspect that simply one of the impregnated females found her way into a place to spend the winter. A container, perhaps, a crate, that got shipped across the Pacific, landed somewhere around Vancouver. When they opened it up, out she flew and established her colony. It only takes a single impregnated female to establish a colony. This makes this kind of invasive pest very, very difficult and really quite problematic."

WHY ARE WE JUST HEARING ABOUT IT NOW?

The hornets are just now starting to emerge from winter hibernation.

Their life cycle begins in April, when queens emerge from hibernation, feed on plant sap and fruit, and look for underground dens to build their nests. Hornets are most destructive in the late summer and early fall.

DANGER TO HUMANS

It was dubbed the “Murder Hornet” in Japan, where it is known to kill people.

The hornet can sting through most beekeeper suits, deliver nearly seven times the amount of venom as a honey bee, and sting multiple times, the Washington Department of Agriculture says, adding that it ordered special reinforced suits from China.

Their stings are big and painful, with a potent neurotoxin. Multiple stings can kill humans, even if they are not allergic, Washington State University entomologists say.

Raupp says the venom contains both a "neurotoxin that attacks your nervous system," and also a cell-destroying toxin that "basically eats up cells."

That can result in organ failure, hemorrhage around the sting site, tissue breakdown, "and of course there's always the possibility of anaphylaxis."

DANGER TO BEES

And, like a marauding army, they attack honey bee hives, killing adult bees and devouring larvae and pupae.

“It’s a health hazard, and more importantly, a significant predator of honey bees," says Murray.

Farmers depend on honey bees to pollinate many important northwest crops such as apples, blueberries and cherries. With the threat from giant hornets, “beekeepers may be reluctant to bring their hives here,” said Island County Extension scientist Tim Lawrence.

An invasive species can dramatically change growing conditions, Murray said, adding that now is the time to deal with the predators.

“We need to teach people how to recognize and identify this hornet while populations are small, so that we can eradicate it while we still have a chance,'' Murray said.

The state Department of Agriculture will begin trapping queens this spring, with a focus on Whatcom, Skagit, San Juan, and Island counties.

SHOULD WE WORRY ABOUT THEM IN THE DMV?

Raupp tells ABC7's Brad Bell the hornets are "no joke" but are just becoming established in the Pacific Northwest.

"Here in Maryland, in the DMV, we've got a bit of time," he says.

Watch his full interview below.