• Question: What insect has the deadliest venom?

    Asked by anon-258100 on 29 Jun 2020.
    • Photo: Gulnar Abdullayeva

      Gulnar Abdullayeva answered on 29 Jun 2020:

      Hi William, thank you for the interesting question.

      According to the University of Florida’s Book of Insect Records, the harvester ant (Pogonomyrmex Maricopa) has the most toxic venom, which is based on the LD50 value required to kill a rodent: 0.12 milligrams per kilogram. So, while Maricopa harvester ant is objectively the most toxic venomous insect in the world, it is not the most dangerous to humans.
      The deadliest animal in the world is the bloody mosquito. According to the BBC reports, about 725000 deaths a year are due to the diseases they spread though their bites (for example, malaria).

      For more information: https://themysteriousworld.com/top-10-most-dangerous-insects-in-the-world/

      I hope it helps.

    • Photo: Nicola Flanagan

      Nicola Flanagan answered on 30 Jun 2020:

      I am not sure which insect has the deadliest venom, but there is such a thing as the Schmidt sting pain index for biting and stinging insects. Have you heard of it before @WilliamW?
      There is also a well known youtuber called Cyote Peterson that you might like. He lets insects bite him and you can see how the bites or stings effect him (I don’t recommend you letting anything sting you though as he has lots of medics and other team members around him). Insects can pack a real punch even thought they are so small.

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