An Asian giant hornet nest was eradicated Aug. 25 in Whatcom County, Wash., by the state Department of Agriculture, the first nest destroyed this year and second since the invasive wasp was discovered in North American in late 2019.

The hornets were nesting in the base of a dead alder tree in a rural area east of Blaine, about one-quarter of a mile from Canada and 2 miles from the nest that the department eradicated last October.

The nest had nearly 1,500 hornets in various stages of development, according to the department.

Department staff approached the nest and vacuumed out 113 worker hornets. The staff netted another 67 hornets in the area.

After vacuuming up the worker hornets, the department removed bark and dead wood at the nest entrance. The nest consisted of nine layers of comb, according to the department.

A section of the tree with the nest was cut and taken to Washington State University Extension in Bellingham to be examined.

“We expect there are more nests out there and, like this one, we hope to find them before they can produce new queens,” department entomologist Sven Spichiger said in a statement.

The department was tipped off to the nest’s general location Aug. 11 by a photograph sent in by a local resident. The photo showed an Asian giant hornet nest attacking a paper wasp’s nest.

The department netted a hornet and tied on an electronic tracking device. The device led the department to the nest last week.

Asian giant hornets are the world’s largest hornets. Their painful stings are dangerous to humans, and they prey on a wide variety of insect species, including honey bees.

The only places in North America that live Asian giant hornets have been sighted are Whatcom County in northwest Washington and nearby in British Columbia, Canada.