This film dives into an extraordinary, alien-like world, revealing the hidden life of the Asian giant hornet. From their meticulous construction of hives to their endless battles with honeybees, we uncover some of the insect world’s most dramatic conflicts.
As spring warms China, Asian giant hornets awaken and begin a dramatic cycle of expansion and survival. A lone queen, having endured the winter, starts a small hive on her own—building the first combs, laying eggs, and raising the workers who will soon take over construction, foraging, and defense. Through summer, the colony grows at a staggering pace, transforming wood from trees, fences, and buildings into enormous nests that can swell to the size of a laundry basket.
Inside, the larvae are key to the hive’s power. They secrete a nutrient-rich liquid that fuels the adult hornets, giving them the strength to dominate the insect world. As apex predators, giant hornets target other social insects, especially honeybees. A scout marks a hive with pheromones, triggering a mass attack in which hornets decapitate bees and dismantle colonies within hours. The larvae and pupae are carried home to feed the hornets’ own brood. But native honeybees have evolved a remarkable defense: they swarm the scout and form a vibrating “beeball,” heating it to lethal temperatures.
By autumn, hornet colonies reach their peak, producing new queens and males. As winter nears and food dwindles, cannibalism and hive raids escalate. Eventually, the queens retreat to hibernate, and the rest of the colony dies—until spring restarts the brutal cycle.