Deadly hornets kill 42 people in China, injure over 1,500

Swarms of aggressive hornets, in their fall mating season have inflicted a deadly toll in a central Chinese province. Hornets have killed 42 people and injured 1,675 people in three cities in Shaanxi province since July, according to the local government. Thirty-seven patients remain in critical condition.

Over the summer and early fall, hornets have invaded schools full of children and descended upon unsuspecting farm workers in China.

In central China, 37 patients remain in serious condition after hornet attacks.

The influx of venom to the human body can cause allergic reactions and multiple organ failure leading to death. Patients been receiving dialysis to remove the toxins from her body. In photos, patients bore deep dark craters scattered across their limbs, the size of bullet wounds.

Government authorities say these attacks are from a particularly venomous species, the world's largest hornet, known as the Asian giant hornet or vespa mandarinia.

The giant hornet extends about 3.5 to 3.9 centimeters in length, roughly the size of a human thumb. It has an orange head with a black tooth used for burrowing, according to an animal database at the University of Michigan.

Local authorities have deployed thousands of police officers and locals to destroy the hives. So far, about 710 hives have been removed and at least 7 million yuan (about $1.1 million) sent to areas affected by hornets, according to a government press release.

The Asian killer hornet, also known as Vespa mandarinia, is the world's largest hornet.