5 Rarest Insects and Where to Find Them

Just when you thought nature couldn’t get any weirder, you find out there are a variety of things insects eat and there are also more than a million insects out there that haven’t even been discovered. Of those that have been discovered, there are thousands of insects going extinct and becoming increasingly rare to find. Check out some of the rarest insects on Earth…these certainly aren’t your common household pests.



#5 Euspinolia militaris (The panda ant)

Yes, there is such thing as a panda ant. But it’s not actual an ant. Euspinolia militaris is a type of wasp known to the mutillidae family. These insects look like cute little panda bugs, but its sting is fierce. The panda ant is also known as a “cow-killer.” Now although this wasp has not been proven to kill a cow, it has killed a two-pound mammal with only six stings. These creepy crawlers are found mainly in Chile but have shown a presence in desert areas like parts of Mexico and the southern United States.

#4 Atrax sutherlandi (Red-fanged funnel spider)

The vampire spider, so they call it. The atrax sutherlandi is a very rare spider found only in Australia. The funnel spider gets its name from the types of web it weaves. This species of spider has blood-red fangs and spins funnel-like webs out of its silk. The tunnel is used as a trap for the spider’s prey. But don’t be alarmed – this vampire spider doesn’t want to suck your blood. Typically, the atrax sutherlandi feeds on other insects.

#3 Lycaedes melissa samuelis (Karner butterfly)

Originally from Karner, New York, these rare butterflies have become nearly extinct due to deforestation. The way these insects live is very specific, and they need a certain habitat to survive. The Karner blue butterfly can only be found in the Northeast part of the United States, in areas like New York and New Hampshire.

#2 Titanus giganteus (The titan beetle)

This creepy crawler calls South America home. The titan beetle is most commonly found in the Amazon rainforest (when and if it’s found). Just one of these enormous beetles averages about nine inches long, making it the largest beetle known to the Earth. This insect has jaws strong enough to break into human flesh.

#1 The rarest insect in the world: Dryococelus australis (The tree lobster)

This giant walking stick lives on Lord Howe Island, which can be found between New Zealand and Australia. Scientists believed this bug to be extinct in the 1920s. However, in the early 2000s, a very small number of the species was found again. The tree lobster is so rare that scientists are trying to breed more than 9,000 of this specific bug