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SECTION TRAINING
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Hornets and yellow-jackets range in size from
1.25 to 2.5 cm and are mainly black and yellow.
Yellow-jackets often live near human habitation
and construct their nests in the ground or close
to it. The “hornets” that soldiers in Singapore
run into therefore are most likely members of
this group. Their stings are painful and some
people may be fatally allergic to their venom.
Interestingly, a dying yellow-jacket worker
releases an alarm pheromone that alerts its mates
and draws them in a swarm to its location.
Officer Cadets Victor Lam and Seng Peng Khoon.
Graphic Courtesy
of West Virginia University.