Insects... horrifying insects

[Asta Kask]

More astonishingly, none of them live in Australia. (http://www.cracked.com/article_15816_5-most-horrifying-bugs-in-world.html)

:smallbiggrin:

I think we should all be happy we don't live in those areas of the world. Except those of us who do, to which I can only say - "Move! Move before it is too late!"

[Ravens_cry]

More astonishingly, none of them live in Australia. (http://www.cracked.com/article_15816_5-most-horrifying-bugs-in-world.html)
That because the Australian spiders eat them all before they can get a foothold.

[ScottishDragon]

........this is creepy,a fly that can grow in my brain.....

[Setra]

Japanese Giant Hornet

I want to visit Japan... but I have a phobia of bees...

[AtlanteanTroll]

@^: I was in Tokyo, and I never saw one.

Dear sweet religion.

Man, Cicada's make me want to run screaming away as fast as I can. Let me be safe in my house.

[Comet]

Should that be marked NSFW? It contains sheer horror, put to words by a writer who clearly knows how to use swear words for great evocative effects. Holy **** on a ******* sandwich I'm scared.

[Emperor Ing]

Man, Cicada's make me want to run screaming away as fast as I can. Let me be safe in my house.

Apparently every 17(?) years or so in specific areas, cicada populations spontaneously explode. I lived in one of these areas at the time. It was LOUD. :smallyuk:

[AtlanteanTroll]

Apparently every 17(?) years or so in specific areas, cicada populations spontaneously explode. I lived in one of these areas at the time. It was LOUD. :smallyuk:

As do I. It was horrible. My house was way out in the woods. THEY WERE EVERYWHERE.

[Ponderthought]

We had a guy locally that had bot flies in his arm. he was on the news.

Also, the hookworm man. he died.

And thousands upon thousands of crickets. They pile up in shady corners to about a foot high, then the noonday sun kills them. Cleaning up is like raking leaves.

And scorpions.

And huge aphids. And giant ticks.

Texas sucks.

[Setra]

@^: I was in Tokyo, and I never saw one.

That's nice to know.

[AtlanteanTroll]

We had a guy locally that had bot flies in his arm. he was on the news.

Also, the hookworm man. he died.

And thousands upon thousands of crickets. They pile up in shady corners to about a foot high, then the noonday sun kills them. Cleaning up is like raking leaves.

And scorpions.

And huge aphids. And giant ticks.

Texas sucks.

Don't forget you have the African Killer Bee's.


That's nice to know.

Yes, yes it is.

[TheThan]

Got the Africanized honey bees. but that's about it. though we do get a lot of invasive critters from Asia that tend to "destroy" crops. think they're all mostly harmless though.

[Danne]

This is very disturbing. I'm tempted to go cry myself to sleep or something, but I think I'll have nightmares. :smalleek:

[Delusion]

I have never been gladder that Finland still has coldish winter...

[AtlanteanTroll]

I think I'll have nightmares. :smalleek:

I'll join you. That Bot Fly will scare me to death.

[Eldan]

Nice!

Some of those are pretty cute.

[CrimsonAngel]

We had a guy locally that had bot flies in his arm. he was on the news.

Also, the hookworm man. he died.

And thousands upon thousands of crickets. They pile up in shady corners to about a foot high, then the noonday sun kills them. Cleaning up is like raking leaves.

And scorpions.

And huge aphids. And giant ticks.

Texas sucks.

TEXAS!?

*buys plane ticket*

*freaked out* :smallfrown::smalleek::smallfurious:

[Emperor Ing]

As do I. It was horrible. My house was way out in the woods. THEY WERE EVERYWHERE.

It wasn't too terrible, just that every tree resembled a beehive. With really really huge bees.

[Volthawk]

Apparently every 17(?) years or so in specific areas, cicada populations spontaneously explode. I lived in one of these areas at the time. It was LOUD. :smallyuk:

Yeah, they spawn on prime number years, IIRC.

[CoffeeIncluded]

I like cicadas. My dog on the other hand...

[Danne]

Apparently every 17(?) years or so in specific areas, cicada populations spontaneously explode. I lived in one of these areas at the time. It was LOUD. :smallyuk:

That's only the seventeen-year cicada, though. There's different species of cicada, you know.

And yes, I agree with the general consensus that bot flies are CREEPY and WRONG.

[ghost_warlock]

Just be glad you live on Earth, cuz some planets have to deal with this sort of horrifying insect:

http://loc.mornproductions.com/locimgs/Kreen.jpg

[AslanCross]

Well, there's this guy too:
http://www.starcraftwire.net/gallery/data/502/StarCraft_Samwise038c.jpg

Thank God about the worst thing we have to deal with here is flying roaches.

A good aim and a shoe is all one needs to deal with them.

[Lycan 01]

So I'm outside with my dog this afternoon, and I'm flipping through the mail. I'm reading the newest Kroger advertisements and deals, when I drop a few bits of junk mail on the ground. I lean down, pick 'em up, and keep on reading.

Its a few seconds later that my left pinky finger begins to burn. I look down... and there's a unrightly huge mosquito-like thing with gangly striped legs gnawing on the side of my pinky. I, needless to say, flipped out. Mail flew everywhere as I began to insanely slap my hand against my leg and yelp in horrorified surprise.

The little old lady across the street looks up and just asks: "Did sumthin' bite ya?"

"Yeeeeeaaahh... Sumthin' bit me..." :smalleek:


I honestly don't know what it was. It had the same basic shape and structure of a mosquito, but its body was 3 times bigger and had different wing structure. The legs had black and yellow stripes on them, too, and while I think I've seen those on mosquitos before, mosquitios just don't get so big.

The bite hurt, too. A mosquito bite may burn and itch a bit, but this sucker burned. What started as subtle stinging soon became a very uncomfortable and almost painful burn. Running it under warm and cold water eventually got rid of most of it, but even as I'm sitting here hours later my pinky is still subtly stinging and itching...

Stupid monster mosquito thing. :smallyuk:

[Eldan]

Tiger mosquito? You should probably go see a doctor, to make sure. They spread quite a lot of diseases. They aren't all that large, though.

[ScottishDragon]

I feel sorry for the guy with the japanese hornet on his hand.

Tiger mosquito V
http://agnewsarchive.tamu.edu/westnile/graphics/Image1.jpgWas this it?

[Lycan 01]

Maybe. I just checked Wikipedia, and it says they're an invasive species which can now be found here in Mississippi. But, like I said, this thing was huge. I'm not joking. Its body covered the center third of my pinky. I've never seen a mosquito that big. And it didn't have the abdomen and wings of a normal mosquito. If anything, its wings and abdoment had the wedge-esque shape of something from the beetle family, or something like that. I mean, I only saw it for a moment before spazzing, but that sort of thing kinda burns itself into your mind. :smalleek:



Edit: Oh, and I'm chugging Orange Juice to boost up my immune system. But I've actually been eating healthier and getting in shape recently, so I'm confident that my immune system should be up to speed against most things. And besides, mosquito bites are an every day thing here in Mississippi. So unless you begin showing flu like symptoms, an indicator of West Nile Virus, you're normally not gonna have to worry about a few bites.

[AtlanteanTroll]

I should stay out of this thread. Im all ready vary Entyphobic as it is. :smalleek:

[The Librarian]

Okay, I work in the Insectarium at the St. Louis Zoo, and I wish I could say something comforting about these insects...but I can't.

The curator at my Inscetarium won't even let Fire Ants be put on exhibit for fear they might somehow get out. I saw Fire Ants down in Florida and I can say that those alone are pretty terrifying when you piss them off. (Big Toe was swollen for a week.:smallfrown:) That said there is some hope.

Mainly with the Jap Hornets that only live for about 5-6 weeks in there entire life.

It also appears that thanks to cold winters in North America, Africanized Bees are unable to go any farther North than maybe Southern Arkansas.

[Syka]

Wait...not everyone has fire ants? And huge mosquitoes aren't the norm?


I need to get out of Florida...:smallfrown:


My sister is epi-pen-is-required allergic to fire ants, though. I just get a really bad swollen itchy spot. I've currently got about...7-8 mosquito bites on my legs. I wasn't even outside when I got them. D: Still no clue how they got in the house.

My work was invaded by sugar ants last week. Termites back in March. This was fun because it only occurred at the front register while I, the bugphobic worker, was working. :smallsigh: Oh timing. We constantly have gnats in the summer, though.

And at random intervals on the sidewalk there will be giant swarms of gnats.

Yes...I think this leaving Florida thing behind is good.

[Ponderthought]

TEXAS!?

*buys plane ticket*

*freaked out* :smallfrown::smalleek::smallfurious:

Also, tarantulas. But they dont really count as insects..but the massive centipedes do!

Lets face it, Texas is a playground for the unspeakably horrible.

[Skeppio]

The curator at my Insectarium won't even let Fire Ants be put on exhibit for fear they might somehow get out.

That's...somewhat unsettling.

[Moonshadow]

I have somehow never been happier to be an Australian.

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

Let's see, the scariest thing we have in Canada is mosquitos, and they're only scary to Europeans who've never been to Louisiana.

Um, we have bumbly bees? They're very friendly. You can actually pet them. (don't actually do this unless you know what you're doing.) I've pet bumbly- bees before.

No, we just don't have any terrifying insects anywhere near Canada. Or at least, not in Toronto and surroundings.

[TheThan]

A couple of weeks ago, late at night I stepped out to the car to fetch something out of it. So I walked across the front yard as the car was parked on the curb. I was wearing sandals, when I got back inside (walking again across the grass), I noticed my feet were itching. So I bent down to take off my sandals and scratch, when I noticed my feet had been completely chewed up by some sort of insect.


I accidentally tracked the culprit into the house, and it took me a while to find it and destroy it, but I managed to succeed in killing it. Darn think left my feet itching and red with bug bites for a few weeks. It was some sort of hopping black thing, probably some form of flea, but it’s dead now and my feet have healed up nicely. yeah i did vacuum the floors thoroughly.

[Innis Cabal]

I have somehow never been happier to be an Australian.

You have jack jumpers. What are you so happy about.

[Lord Fullbladder, Master of Goblins]

I don't need this thread, I'm already terrified of insects. I freaked out just going through Gardenscape's butterfly thing, with the walking through the room with all the little butterflies fluttering about. One bounced off my head. Well, I say bounced, more it brushed past/tried to land on the side of my head and I wigged out. Not my finest moment.

What's this about no scary bugs in Canada? You ever had to get around a big damn potato spider? I don't know if that's the right name, not looking it up ('cause of pictures, mostly). Big-ass web, sits in the middle like a its no big deal, still pretty small at a bit bigger than a loonie? God damn I hate those things.

Also grasshoppers.

[Keld Denar]

Damn nature! You is SCARY!

:smallcool:

[Zom B]

Ah, good. I get to post a few more:

First off, we have the Giant Weta:
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_j0pe-kdKmj4/SYMTD_XFj7I/AAAAAAAAAls/kslZONZLXwc/s400/giant_weta.jpg

Scolopendra gigantea:
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_vudQtJOQyrk/S9j0ZMlIBdI/AAAAAAAAAaI/0lL8Dd-xw80/s1600/kelabang+1.jpg

The Titan Beetle:
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_9gbYHPyGGHU/RqPvE7jeYTI/AAAAAAAAAII/-zInE7OLJZI/s400/Titanus1.JPG

[Eldan]

I want one!

[AtlanteanTroll]

It also appears that thanks to cold winters in North America, Africanized Bees are unable to go any farther North than maybe Southern Arkansas.

People use to think that. Now they're saying they're inter-breeding with the bee's here, and the offspring can live in the colder climates and are still deadly. Yay Discovery Channel. :smallannoyed:

[Moonshadow]

You have jack jumpers. What are you so happy about.

That they don't live near me, duh :smalltongue: I don't have to deal with them at all, just the giant spiders, and you can see the lifebars on them from a good distance away.

[Serpentine]

Pft. That Cracked is oooold :smalltongue:

Hm, lets see... We've got our cicada swarms... I have a love-hate relationship with spitfires:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3180/2566537615_c40aeeebb4.jpg

And blowflies everywhere, of course. And our inch-long ants.

[Setra]

Pft. That Cracked is oooold :smalltongue:

Hm, lets see... We've got our cicada swarms... I have a love-hate relationship with spitfires:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3180/2566537615_c40aeeebb4.jpg

And blowflies everywhere, of course. And our inch-long ants.

They're adorable! :smallsmile:

[Serpentine]

Supposedly they spit acid. But probably not.

edit: Eucalyptus oil, apparently. Huh. Half a point to urban legend!

[Zherog]

I honestly don't know what it was.

Clearly, it was a dire mosquito. :)

[Emperor Ing]

Gnats. Gnats everywhere. It's nowhere near a bad now where I am now but before that...ugh. :smallyuk:

[AkazilliaDeNaro]

HOLY H*LL WERE ALL GOING TO DIE!!!!

(headslap)

okay now that im back. Why universe why?

[Comet]

okay now that im back. Why universe why?

Five Bizarre Ways the Weather Can Kill You Without Warning (http://www.cracked.com/article_16685_5-bizarre-ways-weather-can-kill-you-without-warning.html)

Five Cosmic Events That Could Kill You Before Lunch (http://www.cracked.com/article_16817_5-cosmic-events-that-could-kill-you-before-lunch_p1.html)

How's that for Lovecraftian horror.

[Asta Kask]

I honestly don't know what it was. It had the same basic shape and structure of a mosquito, but its body was 3 times bigger and had different wing structure. The legs had black and yellow stripes on them, too, and while I think I've seen those on mosquitos before, mosquitios just don't get so big.

The bite hurt, too. A mosquito bite may burn and itch a bit, but this sucker burned. What started as subtle stinging soon became a very uncomfortable and almost painful burn. Running it under warm and cold water eventually got rid of most of it, but even as I'm sitting here hours later my pinky is still subtly stinging and itching...

Stupid monster mosquito thing. :smallyuk:

Did it look like this: (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/stirge.htm)

http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/MM35_gallery/MM35_PG237.jpg

[The Librarian]

People use to think that. Now they're saying they're inter-breeding with the bee's here, and the offspring can live in the colder climates and are still deadly. Yay Discovery Channel. :smallannoyed:

Well...time to purchase that "emergency flamethrower" for the day Africanized Bees make a nest nearby where I live.

((WARNING: Righty does not condone the purchase or use of flamethrowers for killing insects.))

[Danne]

Um, we have bumbly bees? They're very friendly. You can actually pet them. (don't actually do this unless you know what you're doing.) I've pet bumbly- bees before.

You know what's even neater? Sweat bees. They'll sit right on you (om nom nomming on the salt on your skin) and really don't sting at all. And I guess even if they do, it doesn't hurt. They're practically cuddly!

[The Librarian]

I don't need this thread, I'm already terrified of insects. I freaked out just going through Gardenscape's butterfly thing, with the walking through the room with all the little butterflies fluttering about. One bounced off my head. Well, I say bounced, more it brushed past/tried to land on the side of my head and I wigged out. Not my finest moment.

What's this about no scary bugs in Canada? You ever had to get around a big damn potato spider? I don't know if that's the right name, not looking it up ('cause of pictures, mostly). Big-ass web, sits in the middle like a its no big deal, still pretty small at a bit bigger than a loonie? God damn I hate those things.

Also grasshoppers.

*Pats Lord Fullbladder on the shoulder.*

There there, I know what insects you speak of but have the decency to not show them here. Just take the pleasure in knowing that the spider you see is nothing compared to this. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goliath_birdeater)

And yes I have held one of these guys. Most awesome and terrifying moment of my life.:smallamused::smallbiggrin::smalleek:

[Ranger Mattos]

...luckily (at least for me), none of those live in Wisconsin.

[lord pringle]

Why the hell did I enter this thread?
because of where I'm from in California I'm terrified of bugs, mosquito bites drive me insane, and right now I'm slapping all over because I feel like stuff is crawling all over me. :yuk:

[Syka]

I personally enjoyed 5 Lovable Animals You Didn't Know Were Secretly Terrifying (http://www.cracked.com/blog/5-lovable-animals-you-didnt-know-are-secretly-terrifying/). :smallsmile:

[CoffeeIncluded]

Bees/wasps/those kinds of insects. Especially hornets and yellow jackets. AUGH.

[Mystic Muse]

Well...time to purchase that "emergency flamethrower" for the day Africanized Bees make a nest nearby where I live.

((WARNING: Righty does not condone the purchase or use of flamethrowers for killing insects.))

Actually, flamethrowers, while not a good idea for general insects, have saved kids from being stung to death by Africanized honey bees.

[Bhu]

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/12/photogalleries/greater-mekong-new-species-photos/photo2.html

Cant believe no ones posted this yet

[Danne]

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/12/photogalleries/greater-mekong-new-species-photos/photo2.html

Cant believe no ones posted this yet

That's actually really really cool. :smallbiggrin:

[Maelstrom]

Maybe. I just checked Wikipedia, and it says they're an invasive species which can now be found here in Mississippi. But, like I said, this thing was huge. I'm not joking. Its body covered the center third of my pinky. I've never seen a mosquito that big. And it didn't have the abdomen and wings of a normal mosquito. If anything, its wings and abdoment had the wedge-esque shape of something from the beetle family, or something like that. I mean, I only saw it for a moment before spazzing, but that sort of thing kinda burns itself into your mind. :smalleek:


...

Horsefly? Darn nasty things

[Eldan]

That's actually really really cool. :smallbiggrin:

Anything able to "shoot cyanide" has to be. :smallbiggrin:

[Arcane_Secrets]

Meet the rove beetle... (http://www.forces.gc.ca/health-sante/wn-qn/adv-avi/Paederus-eng.asp)

[Danne]

Gah. He's an ugly s.o.b., isn't he?

[Flickerdart]

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/12/photogalleries/greater-mekong-new-species-photos/photo2.html

Cant believe no ones posted this yet
Looks like something from MM V. What's the challenge rating on that sucker?

[The Librarian]

Actually, flamethrowers, while not a good idea for general insects, have saved kids from being stung to death by Africanized honey bees.

Yay! My proposed idea has saved lives already. I'm a hero.:smallamused::smalltongue:

No, I'm not actually that smug.

[Keld Denar]

I just saw a huge spider crawl across my couch. It was about the size of a quarter, maybe a little bigger. Had big ol' fangs out in front. I'm not too worried. Its not a widow spider (http://biology.clc.uc.edu/graphics/taxonomy/animals/arthropoda/arachnida/black%20widow/JSC%209911%20Black%20Widow%20belly%201.JPG) or a hobo spider (http://www.srv.net/~dkv/hobospider/femhobo.jpg), and we don't have any other poisonous guys here in Washington. Also, most larger spiders tend to be non-venomous predators who are nearly harmless to humans. Like the wolf spider (http://crawford.tardigrade.net/journal/album/boompardosascan.jpg).

[Bhu]

Looks like something from MM V. What's the challenge rating on that sucker?

The giant version in my critter thread is a CR 7

[Serpentine]

I just saw a huge spider crawl across my couch. It was about the size of a quarter, maybe a little bigger....
That's "huge"? :smallconfused:

[Keld Denar]

You know Serp, you spend all that time and energy talking about how not everything in Oz will kill you on a moments notice, and then you make offhand remarks like that that REALLY make us wonder if you've been blowing smoke up our behinds this whole time and the whole continent is just swarming with billions of deadly critters waiting for the right moment to launch their plans for planetary dominance...

You're REALLY not helping your case! :smalltongue:

[Serpentine]

Pthpthpthpthttt :smalltongue: Huntsmans are practically harmless!

[Asta Kask]

...
That's "huge"? :smallconfused:

Size matters not. Judge me by my size, do you?

[Killer Angel]

Size matters not.

'cept for Godzilla, obviously.
But he's not an insect, neither arachnid. :smallwink: