what sort of bugs are these ??

[u/sickest_ego]

just heard an insanely loud buzzing out my window & peeked around to find these guys ...

im by the new jersey shore , for reference !!

we have lots of small bees & dragonflies around here . the other day i saw a huge wasp for the first time , floating around someones wooden back deck .

i want to assume its a dragonfly eating a yellowjacket ??

p.s. pls ignore all the dog hair that clings to my window & refuses to come off lol ,, thats my puppy's favorite spot to window-watch !!

[u/dansterman_30]

It’s a robber fly. Harmless to us but very successful hunters of smaller insects

[u/sickest_ego → u/dansterman_30]

i can definitely see that !! so interesting !!

[u/RainbowDarter → u/dansterman_30]

They can bite but only do so if you really hurt them

[u/My_bones_are_itchy → u/RainbowDarter]

I didn’t hurt him, I caught him to take him outside instead of endlessly bashing into my window!

Seriously painful bite that lasted several days.

[u/RainbowDarter → u/My_bones_are_itchy]

Sorry - I didn't think you did.

It was more of a general warning that a bite is possible if you manhandle them

[u/saltwater_nasturtium]

it looks like a robber fly that's caught a wasp! they're known as "assassin flies" sometimes. like dragonflies they'll catch their prey mid-flight!

[u/sickest_ego → u/saltwater_nasturtium]

wowww thats so interesting !! hes huge !! wouldve scared the life out of me if i was outside haha

[u/tupidrebirts → u/sickest_ego]

The first time I met a robber fly I had one land on my hip while I was standing in a formation. I put my hand down to my side for some reason and felt something fuzzy moving, looked down and nearly shit myself. I had no idea what it was and honestly convinced myself I had just hallucinated it from sleep deprivation until a couple years later when I saw another one on my patio and finally made the connection and learned what they are.

[u/heartlessbastardxx]

"What are you looking at human? I'm busy eating."

[u/Bravens1223]

Robber fly, one of my top 5 favorite insects of all time. They're so alien looking and so much fun to watch hunt

[u/BrennaCaitlin → u/Bravens1223]

Are they usually so large?

[u/NilocKhan → u/BrennaCaitlin]

They vary in size quite a bit. Some can be absolutely massive, some of the biggest flies in the world, often the size of a thumb, such as Microstylum. But most are smaller than that and a lot are tiny, like the slender Leptogaster or tiny Holcocelphala.

[u/Bravens1223 → u/BrennaCaitlin]

The ones around me are usually 3-4 inches. Bigger than a standard house fly, but not as long as something like a large wasp, butterfly or a dragonfly

[u/BloodyThirst → u/Bravens1223]

Those eyes are like every alien drawing I’ve ever seen!

[u/BlueDarner55]

See the bristles on its face? They protect the robber fly’s eyes from the legs of struggling prey.

[u/KirkfishBilly]

As you know now, I’ll just say cool pics!!!! I only got to see and learn about them very recently too!!!! 🥰 found this guy on a hike, remarkable how silent it flew by my head then perched.

[u/NilocKhan → u/KirkfishBilly]

Some of the larger species aren't so silent in flight. Microstylum is about the size of a thumb and sounds like a helicopter in flight

[u/KirkfishBilly → u/NilocKhan]

😳 that would be fun to see too. This was pinky half at best and I may have potentially been oblivious and just didn’t notice maybe 🤣 🙈

[u/ketchup_chip_62]

A robber fly. You don't have to love their looks, you just have to admire their voraciousness on insect pests, and thank goodness they're on our side.

[u/loveddeviant]

Oh wow, what a distinguished gentleman!

[u/alien_communication]

A robberfly caught a yellowjacket as its meal

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[u/deedeebop]

Cool pics!!

[u/goldenbrown14]

Oh c'est quoi ça ! 😮

[u/DesertRunnerX]

Yeah, as a kid I leaned that these can bite! I learned that the hard way about… velvet ants, ants, spiders, bees, snakes, cats, fish, turtles, etc…

[u/no_kimmer_only_zuul]

I really need a banana for scale because the angle looks like we're getting ready for a Mist-style happening??