STING IN THE WAIL
Moment huge hornet attacks mouse leaving it writhing in agony on ground as it is repeatedly stung
BRUTAL footage shows a desperate mouse fighting for its life as it wrestles with a giant hornet.
During the duel the rodent writhes in agony as the insect grabs hold and jabs with its stinger.
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After a bitter brawl, believed to have been filmed in Gulfport, Mississippi, the hornet emerges victorious, leaving the mouse fatally injured on the floor.
The heartbreaking final seconds of the clip show the furry rodent frantically gasping for air.
A social media user who posted the clip claims the parasitic wasp was targeting the tiny creature to lay eggs inside it.
But other viewers suggested it is unlikely a mammal would be chosen as a host.
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In the footage, the mouse struggles to escape the clutches of the attacker, who appears to be stronger.
The pair tussle and roll several times as the hornet viciously stings the rodent's face.
Eventually the huge winged insect flies off, leaving a lifeless opponent on the stony ground.
It closely resembles an Asian giant hornet, whose sting injects an especially potent venom that contains, like many bee and wasp venoms, a cytolytic peptide, that can damage tissue.
Nat Geo video of 30 Asian Hornets destroying 30,000 European bees
They are the world's largest hornets, native to temperate and tropical Eastern Asia.
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However in recent years, more of the hornets have been spotted in Britain, with concerned beekeepers worried their hives are increasingly under threat.
Queens grow up to 3cm in length, and workers up to 2.5cm.
Their bodies are dark brown or black, and bordered with a yellow band, while they have one band across the abdomen.
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