Cicada Killers: Not That Scary - Learn Stuff

I am not a big fan of stinging insects. Cicada Killers are one of the most scary-looking you`ll come across, but aren`t so bad. Hornets are much worse.

I`ve been stung by yellow jackets, bees, paper wasps... I even got attacked by a group of hornets - in the head. So when a two-inch buzzing monster comes flying on my porch, I`m on it.

I remember enough about general entomology to call this a Hymenoptera off the top of my head, but I didn`t know exactly what this huge thing was.

Turns out, they are called cicada killers. That`s a friendly name, right? These are a type of wasp, but are not like many wasps I am used to.

First of all, they are solitary, so they don`t live in colonies and come at you en masse. The males don`t have stingers at all, and the females are only known to sting humans when being stepped on barefoot or if you disturb the nest (both are understandable). They burrow into the ground in loose soil in case you were wondering.

You don`t even have to worry about bites because their mouth parts aren`t strong enough to damage human skin. The truth is, these things would rather leave you alone and chow down on a nice juicy cicada.

They may be scary, but unlike most other wasps, they have better things to do than mess with humans.