All you need to know about the deadly giant water bug that attacks anything that moves – even humans, hence its nickname ‘toe-biter’. <\/p>
Most aquatic insects avoid fish. Yet Trinidad’s giant water bug Lethocerus maximus<\/em> hunts them, along with frogs, salamanders and other critters.<\/strong><\/p> The biggest true bug<\/a> on Earth, L maximus grows to nearly 12cm long and can take down a vertebrate many times its size.<\/p> Often nestled among vegetation near, on or under water, it typically catches prey by surprise, latching on to a passer-by with hulkish raptorial’ legs, sinking a dagger-like beak into the victim and injecting a blend of tissue-eating enzymes that liquefy its insides. The bug then sucks up the pur\u00e9ed bodyparts like a protein shake. It attacks anything that moves – even humans, hence its nickname ‘toe-biter’.<\/p> There’s no escaping it in deeper waters. It’s a good swimmer, with paddle-like legs and strong muscles. It can also scuba dive, breathing oxygen trapped under its wings. If the supply dwindles, the bug need not surface – it uses an extendible, snorkel-like appendage called a siphon to tap into a bubble and rofill it-“<\/p> But a giant water bug’s most dangerous weapon may be its acumen – at least judging from an anecdote reported, fittingly, in the entomology journal Psyche.<\/p> A water bug was floating on the surface of a creek above a 25cm-long trout, intermittently wiggling one of its legs until the fish lunged at it and both animals disappeared. Some time later, the trout resurfaced – belly up, with the insect clinging to its head. The bug’s trick had clearly worked, turning this would-be predator into prey – and ultimately a super-sized sushi smoothie.<\/p>
How does Trinidad’s giant water bug catch its prey?<\/strong><\/h2>