'Bee Panther' spotted in Tennessee is as terrifying as it looks
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) -- A large bug known as the 'Bee Panther' was spotted in Tennessee eating a wasp on a woman's car.
Ashli Womack of Knoxville shared photos with FOX 17 News of the Red-Footed Cannibalfly, its scientific name Promachus rufipes.
The fly is known to eat smaller flies of its species, bees, wasps, and other insects. These massive bugs are built to hunt according to the Ohio State University Extension.
A report from OSU Extension on the bee panther just adds to the fly's mystique. The bee panther will slam into its victim in a high-speed collision, and "produces a snapping sound that may be heard several feet away."
It then injects saliva which contains enzymes and a neurotoxin into its prey, paralyzing the prey and sucks the prey's body fluids.
