The Tiger Beetle Is Here to Murder Anything It Can

(playful music)

[Narrator] Oh my.

You okay little ant?

Can I get you anything?

No? All right, good luck.

Welcome to the jaws of the tiger beetle.

The most ferocious insect on planet Earth.

The beetle is pretty much just

legs and a mouth with

a little bit of body attached.

And they're insatiable.

Quite literally.

Like, who even messes with ladybugs?

Come on, man.

They'll even tussle with spiders.

Okay, and get off me.

And thank you.

And tiger beetles are

astoundingly fast.

They'll sprint so quickly

that even though they have giant eyes,

they can't collect enough photons.

So periodically they go blind.

But they stop,

get their bearings again,

and continue pursuit.

Once they get ahold of something,

there's no escape.

The beetle's massive jaws can

cut through just about anything.

And the tiger beetle is no slouch

in the air either.

So really, prey has nowhere to hide.

Even as a larvae,

the beetle is a menace.

They get in a vertical tunnel

in waiting for a victim.

This ladybug was lucky.

And not so much.

Even big old caterpillars aren't safe.

So count your blessings

you're not on the menu.

Because hoo boy.