What can kill a murder hornet? How about an ordinary praying mantis?
While everyone was already on edge across the nation over COVID-19 concerns, news broke about the largest hornet in the world, the "Murder Hornet" now starting to spread across the United States. The nearly two-inch long insect understandably freaked a lot of people out, especially those with allergies to insect stings.
After all, it is huge, it has ferocious jaws and the sting from this insect delivers a deadly neurotoxin that can and does kill up to 50 people a year. Oh, and unlike your average bee, it can sting someone multiple times. You do not even have to be allergic to potentially die.
The ferocious nature of this insect was further cemented when an alleged video of one killing a mouse went wildly viral. However, the murder hornet is not immune to becoming part of the food chain. The video below shows the ferocious-looking insect stands no chance against a praying mantis.
Praying Mantis eats Murder Hornet pic.twitter.com/CNXQAetp0g
— Nature is Metal (@NaturelsMetal) May 7, 2020
That mantis just did not care about the reputation of this hornet. It simply chews the deadly stinging insect's head clean off!
The real name for the murder hornet is the "Asian Giant Hornet." The ominous nickname was given to the insect in parts of Japan. While this insect is quite intimidating-looking and the potential problems of a spread across North America are concerning, they also are not unstoppable.
If anything, it is good to know there is at least one other insect here that could help with keeping any potential murder hornet spread in check. This video also proves once again that the praying mantis is one of the most terrifying predators of the animal kingdom.
Add the murder hornet to the long list of victims of the mantis, which already includes hummingbirds, snakes, lizards and even small fish. One thing is for sure, it makes us glad that praying mantids do not grow larger than a few inches!
For more outdoor content from Travis Smola, be sure to follow him on Twitter and check out his Geocaching and General Outdoor Youtube Channels.
NEXT: NIGHTMARE FUEL: 7 TIMES A PRAYING MANTIS NABBED A HUMMINGBIRD OFF A FEEDER
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