Psytalla horrida "Horrid King" Assassin Bug

Horrid King Assassin Bugs (Psytalla horrida) are one of the most beautiful of examples of its group that hobbyists keep in captivity. It has a striking appearance with a contrast of  black and red/orange hues with well developed spikes as they reach adulthood. They also reach sizes of up to 45mm!

Quite surprisingly, these insects are relatively easy to keep. As they are from the southern Sahara in Africa, they prefer dry conditions and don’t need spraying very often – we find that having a small dish of water is enough for them. We find that they do well at around 24 degrees, we do not supply supplemental heating to achieve this, though if required you could use a heat mat on one side of their enclosure - please do ensure you hook this up to a thermostat!

Now, the coolest part of owning assassin bugs, is that they are pure predators and feed on pretty much any other insect you offer them, even if they are much bigger than the assassin bug. They will even hunt in groups if the prey is large enough!

They take down pray thanks to very potent venom they are inject through their sharp mouth parts. Be aware – we would not recommend for handling as their bites pack a punch, they can spray an irritating gas when they feel threatened.

All of our invertebrates are captive bred here at The Bug Room. Please do not support the wild capture of invertebrates. More often than not, captive bred animals are available.