The Ringed Assassin Bug (Pselliopus cinctus) is an ambush predator that stalks its victims on flowering plants in gardens, meadows, and forest margins. It disables its prey by injecting it with digestive juices before consuming the liquefied internals like a milkshake through a straw. Wait, wasn’t that the plot for one of those low-budget 1950s horror flicks? Yeah, I remember it now; they were peddling grasshopper shakes at the snack bar during the intermission and the sales were through the roof. Well, maybe not. Although the Ringed Assassin Bug sometimes takes a pollinating insect like a leafcutter bee, its most frequent targets are flies, aphids, leafhoppers, and various caterpillars. Pselliopus cinctus is sometimes called the Sycamore Assassin Bug, though you’re not likely to ever find them on these lowland trees.
