White-spotted Assassin Bug
Assassin bugs can kill and eat insects twice their size.
Assassin bugs are predators. They lie very still in rotting logs and hollow tree stumps, waiting for other insects to pass by. When a cricket or other prey comes close enough, the assassin bug snatches it and holds on tight. An assassin bug's mouthparts form a beak that it uses to pierce its prey's body and inject venom. The venom paralyzes the insect so it doesn't struggle. The assassin bug then feeds by sucking fluids out of the insect's body.
Being small creatures, assassin bugs need to protect themselves against other animals that might eat them. Their dark coloring helps them camouflage among decaying wood. And they have special ways of protecting themselves against predators. When disturbed, an assassin bug might bit or spray a stinging mist from an opening in its abdomen. The liquid usually hurts the predator's eyes and nose. Yet, some birds, rodents, and large spiders are still able to eat assassin bugs.
A female assassin bug lays her eggs in the moist leaf litter of the rain forest. When the eggs hatch after one to two months, the babies, called nymphs, are red with black heads and yellow legs. They don't have wings yet and eat very tiny insects. The nymphs molt four times as they grow. After the last molt, they have wings and the two white spots that ive this bug its name!
Area:
West Africa
Habitat:
Rain forest
Food:
Crickets and other small insects
Size:
1 1/4 inches long
Babies:
Nymphs are red and wingless when they hatch.
(source:google/http://adminkids.sandiegozoo.org/)
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