Assassin bugs really take their name to heart. ⁣ ⁣ The white spot assassin bug is mainly carnivorous, eating small insects such as crickets and beetles. They have a mouth that forms a beak, which allows them to inject venom into prey. For defense they are able to product a toxic mist that they spray from their abdomen to repel predators. | Museum of Life and Science

Springtime ASSASSIN! This bee assassin bug is one of my favorite assassin bugs I’ve ever encountered! Those vibrant colors easily caught my eye, but can anyone tell me why this insect is so brightly colored? I missed it at first, but if you look closely at the log I found him on you can see his leftover molt! That’s right, this assassin bug had just molted to adult, and left its nymph stage skin behind! After molting these insects can be more vibrantly colored until their exoskeleton fully harde