In the insect world, survival often hinges on speed, precision and occasionally a bit of venom.
Some species overwhelm their victims in coordinated swarms; others paralyse prey with surgical stings or slowly liquefy them from the inside out. Here, we reveal some of the most lethal insects on the planet.
Brutal insects: meet 9 ruthless killing machines
Fire ants
One of the deadliest insects in the world is the fearsome fire ant, which clamps down on the skin of its victim to inject a powerful, painful venom. They take their name from the intense, burning sensation they cause through their venomous sting – which has been compared to a burn. They can pivot and sting their prey multiple times, and mass stinging can be fatal to small animals. Like many ants, fire ants work in large groups, latching onto prey simultaneously.
These ants are resilient little fellows, and can withstand impressive amounts of pressure – up to 750 times their body weight, in fact. As a collective group, fire ants can form rafts that survive underwater and they can distribute their weight across their exoskeletons to withstand great forces.
Robber fly
Also known as assassin flies, robber flies are named for their notoriously aggressive hunting behaviour, which sees them acting as aerial predators – robbing other insects of their lives. They will ambush their prey in flight, using sharp, sucking mouths to inject paralysing venom into their victims, as well as digestive enzymes to help them process their lunch. This venom will liquefy the prey’s internal tissues, and then the robber fly drinks its prey… like a delicious protein smoothie.
Emerald cockroach wasp
Nicknamed the 'zombie wasp', the emerald cockroach wasp is known for its unusual reproductive behaviour. It exclusively hunts for cockroaches, which it will use as food for its young. The female will sting a cockroach, targeting specific areas of the brain tissue to paralyse it. The wasp will then drag the paralysed cockroach (by its antenna) into a burrow, lay an egg on it and seal it in. The larva then hatches, and eats the paralysed cockroach.
Assassin bug
The clue is in the name, but the assassin bug has a few gruesome killing tactics up its sleeve. It pierces its prey using its needle-like mouthparts, injecting digestive enzymes. Like the robber fly, the assassin bug liquefies its prey’s insides. Unlike the robber fly, however, the assassin bug hunts on land, waiting to ambush its prey.
Damsel bug
Damsel bugs are stealthy assassins, rather than ruthless executioners – but you certainly wouldn’t want to find yourself on the receiving end of their piercing injection of digestive enzymes. And again, we have another insect that liquefies the insides of its prey. Lots of liquid lunches around here.
Antlion
The hunting methods of the antlion are unique – and one of the most ruthless ways any predator lures its prey to its death. Antlion larvae will set a particularly unexpected trap for their prey, crawling around in a spiral to create a cone-shaped hole in the sand, flicking the grains of sand away with their heads. By the time they reach the centre at the base of the spiral, the sides of the hole are extremely steep, and prey will inevitably fall into it. The antlion will then flick the sand to create landslides, which drag their prey down to the depths of the hole – where they’ll become lunch.
Army ant
Army ants host mass raids to capture their prey, coordinating a swarm of thousands – and sometimes millions – of individuals. They stream out of their nest, operating like a moving battlefield. If that wasn’t threatening enough, their method of execution is nearly as brutal. They use their scissor-like mandibles to dismember their prey, whether that’s insects, spiders or small invertebrates, working together to take down their (much larger) victims.
Tarantula hawk wasp
The tarantula hawk wasp has one of the most painful stings on Earth – and can eat a tarantula alive from the inside out. Scared? Tarantula hawks have no predators. They are parasitoids to tarantulas, which serve as the primary host for their larvae. Females sting the spiders, paralysing them, and drag them into their burrows to feed their offspring, in much the same way as the emerald cockroach wasp. The American entomologist Justin Schmidt, creator of the Schmidt pain scale for stinging insects, puts the wasp at number two on his scale, beaten only by the bullet ant. He described the tarantula hawk’s sting as “instantaneous, electrifying and totally debilitating”.
Asian giant hornet
The fact that the Asian giant hornet also goes by the name 'murder hornet' should tell us everything there is to know. It’s also the largest hornet in the world – terrifying. Those who have been stung by the world’s biggest wasp have likened the pain to being stabbed by a hot needle. Its sharp mandibles slice through prey, and it will decapitate an entire hive of honeybees – not only chopping off its victims' heads but also their limbs.
Top image: A robber fly eats its prey. Credit: Chris Atkinson/Getty Images
