Jagged Ambush Bugs eating a Bald-faced Hornet - Phymata - BugGuide.Net

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Copyright © 2005 tom murray

Jagged Ambush Bugs eating a Bald-faced Hornet - Phymata -

Harvard, Worcester County, Massachusetts, USA
September 7, 2005

How do such small bugs subdue a large aggressive insect like this wasp?
I can see a spider taking down a larger bug, using venom, but how would an ambush bug hold on without being carried off by the wasp?

Contributed by tom murray on 8 September, 2005 - 8:49pm
Last updated 10 May, 2021 - 8:14pm

Moved

Moved from Jagged Ambush Bugs.

… v belov, 10 May, 2021 - 8:14pm

Ambush bugs.

This image clearly shows how the male, atop the female, takes advantage of her hunting prowess! He is not nearly strong enough to subdue large prey. She is. Ambush bugs habitually catch prey by grabbing a leg, or the "tongue" with only ONE of their big front claws. They use the other "hand" to fend off retaliatory action by the prey until the ambush bug can bite it. The saliva is so toxic it paralyzes the victim almost immediately. That said, I once saw an ambush bug grab a hovering leafcutter bee, only to be yanked off the flower when the bee retreated:-) The snapping of the bug's claw was audible!

… Eric R. Eaton, 9 September, 2005 - 11:48am

Thanks

I didn't know they had toxic saliva. That and the method of capture explains a lot.

… tom murray, 9 September, 2005 - 4:10pm

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