Hornets

Hornets
Background information
Short films	Birds in the Spring
Group information
Members	Various unnamed hornets
Home	A hive
Status	Active

The Hornets are characters featured in the 1933 Silly Symphony short Birds in the Spring. They are a swarm of hornets that Otto encounters during his misadventures.

Background

Most of the hornets seen are shown to be identical to each other - each having a black coloration around their head and their thorax, in addition to having pointy noises sticking out of their head. They are also shown to have two transparent wings as well as having a pattern of black and yellow stripes on their abdomen in addition to each having a stinger sticking out of them. While they inhabit a hive peacefully, they are shown to be hostile to anyone whom they encounter like the case of Otto, often chasing their enemy in a hostile yet aggressive manner.

Role in the short

The hornets appear towards the end of the short when Otto flies into a nearby hive after escaping from a rattlesnake. Just as he enters, a swarm of hornets begin to attack him in an all-out attack, leading Otto being ambushed. The hornets begin chasing him across the meadow where they pass through a tree, cutting it into half (unaware of the animals inside it) as well as passing through a field of wheat. Meanwhile, Otto's parents hear the commotion form a distance, which the father decides to rescue his son from the hornets. Otto's father lands on the spot where his son is being chased by the hornets which he manages to rescue him just before the hornets continue to chase after Otto. Otto's family manages to hide in their own nest to avoid getting stung by the hornets, just as they pass through their home. Although they do not appear again afterwards, Otto's father scolds his son and spanks him, furious with him for wandering too far away from his family and for almost getting himself stung by the hornets, as well as teaching him a lesson.

Trivia

• The working title for Birds in the Spring was Birds and Bees, suggesting that the hornets were originally going to be depicted as bees before these insects were referred to as hornets in the production material.
• Real-life hornets have antennae, unlike the ones featured in Birds in the Spring which do not have antennae on their heads.
• In real life, hornets are not actually hostile towards their enemies, as they are usually non-aggressive insects, unlike the ones in the short. They only attack their predators when they feel provoked.