Carcino!!! What's the strangest bug you've ever learned about? Have you seen it irl? :0
OOOH OOOOH OOOOH OK OK SO.
Here's the weirdest bug I've ever heard of, AND seen for this one: The snake fly!
Well, it's not the weirdest I've known of, but it's the weirdest I've known anything about, and seen in real life.
Unfortunately, the only time I've seen one was dead in a spider's web. It was still amazing to get to see one in person, though!
Wow, that looks like a scary stringer on the end of its abdomen, you may say. But no, that is actually an ovipositor, a completely harmless organ found in female insects that is used to lay eggs. It does make them look fairly menacing, though!
Another detail you may have found bizzare about this insect is it's elongated 'snake-like' neck. I couldn't find any source that detailed what they use them for, but I assume it's an adaptation that has allowed them to more effectively eat the insects they prey upon.
Speaking of which, they are actually INCREDIBLY beneficial insects! They predators of aphids and mites, which, as you may know, are typically not very good for human society.
Say thank you to the Snake fly, one of nature's most elegant forms of pest control!
