Scary Insects

Scary insects that make you say “Ewww!” Nature can come up with really cute things like kittens, puppies and a monkey that can give a duck a bath, but nature also creates the most terrifying things imaginable. Things you never even knew existed. Things that belong in a horror movie. The kind of things you would gladly destroy with a flamethrower if they ever turned up on your doorstep.

1. Japanese Giant Hornet

The Japanese Giant Hornet is about the size of your thumb and when it stings you, it can spray a flesh-melting poison on you. They say it feels like a hot nail being driven into your skin. It can cause you to die from anaphylactic shock, cardiac arrest or multiple organ failure. The worst thing about it is that the poison has a pheromone in it that calls every other hornet in the hive to come over and sting you until you are dead. Every year, in Japan, about 30-40 people die from giant hornet attacks.

2. Bullet Ant

The Bullet Ant is an inch long and it lives in trees. It is incredibly aggressive and if you disturb it at all, it will go into attack mode. It has the worst sting in the insect world. The reason they call it the Bullet Ant is because when it stings you, it’s so painful that it feels like you’ve been shot with a bullet. They say it causes waves of burning, throbbing, all-consuming pain that lasts for almost 24 hours.

3. Africanized Honey Bee

Africanized Honey Bees are the crazy psychos of the insect world. They are called “Killer Bees” because they are insanely territorial and mindlessly aggressive. Scientists estimate that they may have killed a few thousand people. If you so much as step near their hive, every single bee inside will come out and attack you. Hives usually have hundreds of thousands of bees. They will chase you for over half a mile. The worst thing about them is that they look exactly the same as normal bees and there is no way to tell the difference until it’s too late.

4. Army Ants

Army Ants are also known as “Soldier Ants”. They are half an inch long and have massive, powerful, machete-like jaws. They swarm through the jungle, destroying every living thing in their path. If you get in their way, they will simply flow over you and rip into your flesh, tearing you apart with their massive jaws. It doesn’t matter what size you are. There are reports of horses being overwhelmed and shredded by them. They’re also completely blind, which for some reason makes the whole thing worse. There’s a line in a Tom Waits song: “The army ants… They leave nothing but the bones.”

5. Human Bot Fly

These Bot Flies are specially adapted to target humans. First, they lay their eggs on a host like a horsefly or a mosquito. When this horsefly/mosquito lands on you, the eggs rub off onto your skin. Then, your body heat causes the eggs to hatch and the larvae burrow into your skin. That’s where they live. Under your skin. Eating. Getting fat. Turning into maggots that are half an inch long. The worst thing about them is that they can grow anywhere on your body. On your back, on your head, on your butt… Some people have had them in their eyes or in their brains.

6. New Zealand Weta

The New Zealand Weta is the heaviest insect in the world. It weighs up to 71 grams, which is three times heavier than a mouse! Thankfully, they are not dangerous and don’t bite. They rely on their scary looks and size to ward off enemies.

7. Assassin Bug

The Assassin Bug strikes fear in the hearts of its enemies by wandering around with the corpses of its victims on its back.