Male and female scorpionflies

[orionmystery]

 

[nathey6]

Great! Now there are flying scorpions... Just my luck. Lol

 

[CoBilly]

Incredible shots, like always! I've always wanted to visit that part of the world but every picture I see you post is of something that is 1/1,000,000th my size but can kill me in 17 seconds. Maybe dousing myself in diesel fuel would deter them, or taking a hammer to squish them...

 

[squirrels]

I agree with the others. This are some of the most beautiful pictures of cute little nightmare fodder!
:thumbup:

 

[Trblmkr]

Mecoptera (from the Greek: meco- = "long", -ptera = "wings") are an order of insects with about 550 species in nine families worldwide. Mecoptera are sometimes called scorpionflies after their largest family, Panorpidae, in which the males have enlarged genitals that look similar to the stinger of a scorpion. The Bittacidae, or hangingflies, are a prominent family of elongate insects known for their elaborate mating rituals, in which females choose mates based on the quality of gift prey offered by various males.

 

[orionmystery]

LOL...thanks folks for looking and commenting.

They are harmless. The first two were images of the same male. The scorpion-like stinger was his genital.

 

[CaptainNapalm]

Scorpion flies are harmless to humans. Fantastic pics.

 

[mishele]

Always great stuff!!