Saw a Giant Hornet in San Antonio? What It Most Likely Is
Whatever you saw in San Antonio, it was not an Asian giant hornet. Texas has never had one: the state's apiary inspectors say plainly that it isn't here, and the only U.S. population, in Washington state, was wiped out and officially declared gone in December 2024. The large wasp in your yard is almost certainly a native insect, most often a cicada killer, and many of these look-alikes can simply be left alone. Want a second opinion on the insect, or have an actual nest by the house? Call or text (210) 281-1064, or book online.
What the record actually says #
- Where it was found: North American detections came only from British Columbia and one county in northwest Washington. The four U.S. nests located in 2020 and 2021 were all inside hollow alder trees.
- Where it is now: gone. Three years passed without a confirmed find, and on December 18, 2024, WSDA and USDA announced the hornet eradicated from Washington and the whole country (WSDA). WSDA still cautions that it got in once and could again.
- Texas: TAIS says it does not exist here (TAIS), and AgriLife's entomologists have written that Texas doesn't seem to be ideal habitat for it, with summer heat a likely problem.
- The name: entomologists renamed it the northern giant hornet in July 2022, and state and federal agencies switched to the new name.
Why so many big-wasp scares in a city this size? #
San Antonio is home to more than 1.5 million people spread over nearly 500 square miles of Bexar County, according to Census figures. That is a lot of yards, gardens, porches and trails, and a lot of people who have seen the 2020 headlines. Every summer some of them meet one of the large native wasps below for the first time.
If your sighting was on a hike, say along the trails of a natural-area park such as Eisenhower Park on NW Military Highway, the wasp was most likely visiting flowers or hunting, not nesting. Watch from a few steps away, snap a photo, and keep going.
Match what you saw #
| What you noticed | Most likely insect | Where to read more |
|---|---|---|
| Big wasp, dark red front, black-and-yellow rear, digging holes in sunny lawn or bed in summer | Cicada killer | Cicada killers |
| Glossy blue-black body, bright orange wings, on flowers or dragging a spider | Tarantula hawk | Tarantula hawks |
| Very large, mostly orange wasp in spring, alone | Southern yellowjacket queen | Yellowjackets |
| Black-and-white wasp, gray paper ball high in a tree | Baldfaced hornet | Baldfaced hornets |
| Rusty red, slim wasp on an open comb under the eave | Red wasp | Red wasps |
| Big, fuzzy, black-and-yellow, or shiny black, at flowers or wood | Bumble or carpenter bee | Carpenter bees |
AgriLife also points to the pigeon horntail, a wood wasp with a similar head and color. It has no visible waist and cannot sting.
How to rule out the real thing #
The real insect measures roughly an inch and a half to two inches. Its head is bright orange or yellow and as broad as the body behind it or broader, the middle section is dark brown, and the whole insect looks heavy (AgriLife). Compare that with the cicada killer, Texas's usual suspect: about 1 to 1.5 inches, with a head narrower than its thorax and russet wings, and a habit of excavating burrows about the width of a dime or quarter in sunny, sandy soil. Male cicada killers dart at people but have no stinger; females rarely sting unless handled.
AgriLife's advice on cicada killers is to leave them be, since controlling this beneficial insect is rarely warranted. Killing them out of fear removes a native wasp and does nothing about a hornet that isn't here.
Still convinced? Here's how to report it #
Get a sharp photo without getting close, then send it to Texas A&M's entomology department using its online Insect ID form. Beekeepers who suspect a giant hornet is raiding a hive should go straight to TAIS by phone (979-321-5827) or email ([email protected]). Washington's agency handles reports from Washington only.
How Pest Trappers helps after a giant-hornet scare #
A technician can identify the insect during a visit, then tell you whether it needs anything at all. Cicada killers and tarantula hawks rarely do. When the culprit turns out to be a yellowjacket or baldfaced hornet nest near a door or play area, they explain the options and follow the product label. Pest Trappers LLC (TPCL #0887549) quotes after the inspection. See the northern giant hornet guide and the San Antonio service page for more.