Bugs In Japan - warning, bug pictures
 

If there is one thing that really truly scares me about going to japan. It would be the bugs. I've always been quite squeamish when it comes to insects. But having lived most of my life in the city, it hasn't been much of a problem.
Anyways, there are two Japanese bugs in particular that scare the living S#!T out of me.

One: The Mukade

and Two: The Geji-Geji


I know the Geji-Geji is quite harmless (apparantly) but... EWWWWW, as you might be able to tell I have a strong dislike towards lots of legs....

so, I was wondering if there were any other particularly nasty/dangerous little bastards I should know about. I hear the giant killer hornets are responsible for a large number of deaths each year.

feel free to post as many disgusting pictures you can find.
And to people who have actually had the privilege of sharing a house with these bugs, what are your thoughts? Do they bother you at all?

Quit worrying about these bugs. Mosquitoes are the most dangerous in the world due to the diseases they carry. Be very afraid.:ywave:

I have never seen the first - but the second... Those come into our house around this time of year if I`m not careful to plug all the tiny openings on our screen doors and windows.

Most of the time the cats get them before I have to do anything, but it really sucks to have one run across the room or up on the wall. I can`t say I`m a fan of them, but it`s nice at least to know they`re harmless. I was afraid they`d bite me or something.

that's true i guess. But I'm not really afraid of these bugs because of how dangerous they are.

I've always had a fear of centipedes. Just because... they're gross man... lol

actually I think they do bite sometimes.. lol sorry to break it to ya.
But they generally don't bother humans. In fact, they are considered useful to some people due to the fact that they eat cockroaches, moths, and other annoying pests.

The Mukade on the other hand, are vicious, poisonous, giant things, that always live in pairs and bite anything that touches it...

My first day in Japan I came across one of those geji-geji bugs. Luckily it was only a small guy. Hard to catch, they move quite fast and can jump (sorta). I threw it outside after catching it.

The bugs seem to be bigger in Japan don't they? The cockroaches, dragonflies, hornets, etc. I guess it's that warm humid climate.

The bug that scares me the most out here are the ticks. They're sneaky little bastards and many of them carry Lyme disease which is pretty nasty.

Wow, this topic is interesting.. I´ve never seen pictures of something like that, I was like O___O when I saw it... I wouldn´t like to meet this.. Well maybe yes but let it walk on my body... eagh... *stares on 2nd pic...*
More photos of more monsters ^.^

Well, I meant more in the order of running up to me and biting me. :D I can deal with bugs defending themselves - just not when they`re outright vicious.

I have a much greater fear of the huge hornets than I do of mukade... Mukade don`t fly.

Luckily, for the time being, I live in Alaska- where there are virtually no poisonous bugs.


What about the Japanese hornet?

THIS! This is the thing I`m absolutely terrified of. I`ve been terrified of it long long before ever visiting Japan. When I was in grade school someone gave me a paperweight with one inside of it. Not only is it huge and scary it`s also deathly poisonous.

Ugh. *shudder*

Oh, hornets.. I´m scared of them too.. Once there was one lying in front of our house.. It was there for a week, then disappeared. I believe that it was simulating death and waiting for a chance to kill me. I used to go to school longer way just because wasn´t able to go past it..

those hornets are probably the number one most dangerous insects in Japan.

Heres a few facts about them for those who are interested:

1. The venom they sting you with contains many different chemicals which do different things, One of them burns through human tissue.

2. Another chemical in the venom has an odor which will attract many other hornets to you.

3. It can fly 50 miles in a single day.

4. Like all hornets, they can sting you repeatedly.

5. 20-40 people in Japan die each year because of them.


So.. if you see one of these things... BE CAREFUL! they are one of the most deadly insects in the world.

TICKS! oh man, I didn't even know there were any in Canada. I live down in Toronto though, so I'm far away from any real dangerous bugs. But yeah, Lyme's disease is pretty terrible, and those bugs are so small, you might not even notice it until it's too late.

Are these worse than in the U.S.? and does it matter whether you're allergic or not?

I'm fairly certain it was a hornet which stung me repeatedly once, and only ended up puffy and red, where I was stung.

You won't encounter any of them in downtown Toronto. :)

However, they're everywhere out here in the mountains. I went out this past weekend and my 2 partners and I counted about 8 ticks all over us. One of my friends had one embedded in his upper leg.

I'd happily take a hornet bite over a tick bite. The hornet bite will hurt a lot more but at least it won't lead to a rash of illnesses over the following weeks/months/years.

these things... will kill you, lol. So yeah, I'd say they're worse.
If you get a good dose of their venom, it is lethal regardless of allergies.

a regular hornet bite? or a japanese hornet bite? because the japanese ones are lethal.

I'd personally prefer the tick, just sprinkle some vinegar on it and you'll be fine.... probably

Oh, yes, they are worse. An American hornet is pretty much just a hornet unless you are allergic, their sting is like a nasty pinch that swells up and stays sore for a few days. They are kind of mean, but not as bad as some kinds of wasp.

By contrast, a Japanese (or Asian) hornet is a vicious, hateful bastard that has the capacity to kill a person with no allergy. And just to make things more fun, they have absolutely no natural predators.

As for ticks vs. hornets/wasps -- I would trade my hornet sting for a tick bite any day! Lyme disease is actually very rare and only deer ticks are carriers. (Deer ticks are the brown ones with a single white dot on their backs. They are about the size of a capital "O.")

Of course, I'm allergic to bees/hornets/wasps, so it's an easy choice for me.

Ugh, that second picture (first post) is just...*shudders* it reminds me of a spider. I can barly type that word with out shuddering. I'm deathly afraid of spiders, don't know why, I just am. I've seen some pretty nasty spiders where I live, like a wolf spider and a huge nasty black son of a bitch, it was about as big as a woman's fist (not kidding; that was the first spider I actually screamed and ran from, usually I just freeze up). Ew, hornets. I see bees and shit around here, honey bees I could care less about, but hornets *shakes head*, I'll take the long way if I see one. It sounds like when I go to Japan I should carry bug spray around with me, haha. Does anyone know of any nasty spiders in Japan, people have to worry about? (Post pics if you can, pics don't bother me.)

hmmm, as far as I know spiders aren't a huge problem in Japan. Of course there are many of them, but I think there's only one really poisonous one: the Redback Spider.



It seems one of the more common spiders in Japan is the "golden orb weaver"
Which aren't lethal, but still poisonous.

Any more insects? These are very interesting...

Dude.... You're brave. I would have left Japan, right after burning down my house if that happened to me.

I'll post more as soon as I find them.

Thank you very much. And, the red... Something... Spider? Is that native to Japan, or is it an exotic species?

The suzume bachi or giant hornet are definitely something to be wary of. They get particularly upset around the color black, so try not to wear black clothing when in the mountains. They are very fast so you cant outrun them, and if you find one, just get away as fast as you can. Although their size is such that you dont need me telling you that.

The centipedes will bite you, but after 18 years of living in the sticks I have never been bitten. Stepped on one in my bare feet though. Felt like stepping on a gummi bear.

Also be careful of black bears. Not exactly insects, but they are around and dangerous. Best way to prepare for them is to carry something like a whistle or anything that makes a lot of noise - although I guess screaming might accomplish the same thing. Other dangerous animals are mamushi, or japanese vipers. Never seen one in the wild, and monkeys. You would think that monkeys arent dangerous, but they will get pissed if you look them in the eyes and might attack you. And the inushishi or wild boars are said to be dangerous. Ive seen them enough times, but have never been attacked.

it seems it somehow came over to Japan on a plane. Don't know exactly how.


thanks for all that info, especially the tip about black clothes, I'll make sure to remember that one.

Oh my that is huge!!! :O

I don't mind bugs and insects, but that might have to go in my "things I don't like" list lol

Japan is crawling with bugs. The most famous ones are the rhinoceros beetle and the giant sawdust beetle. Kids love these things, and they sell them in pet stores (and sometimes the 100 yen shop).

My first experience with Japanese bugs was when I moved into my apartment and found it infested with huge cockroaches. I bought poison traps which got rid of them, but I hated sharing my apartment with them for the first couple weeks I was here.

The next experience was with a huge gray spider which moved in a few months later. It was as big across as my hand, but it was super fast, and I had a hard time trying to get close enough to kill it. I managed to vacuum it up one day, but it got out of the vacuum cleaner somehow. I finally cornered it one day behind my tv and smacked it with a shoe.

I saw this bug flying through the air when I was walking through the park one day, I have no idea what it is, but it was as big as my hand.

no worries, japanese hornets tend to kill you, so dont worry about allergic reactions. once they attack you they send out a signal to other hornets of its kind to attack.

try waking up with this thing in your bed,lol.


or this


kinda makes you feel better about your situation huh.

My uncle died from Lymes... it's more common than you might think!

(He got bit by a tick in Oregon)

okay that first one is obviously fake.
but still gives me the creeps. second one looks kinda cool actually.

i know but what if you found that in your bed. i probably wouldnt mind. its the bugs with all those eyes that make me sick .

ugh, cockroaches...
that spider sounds interesting, you wouldn't happen to have any pictures of that would you?
and, awesome photograph, as always Sangetsu, that's a crazy looking bug.




Here's another photo of a japanese spider, and some info on it:

lol, you wouldn't mind????
I wouldn't let myself sleep until i nuked that bastard.

I seriously can't stand like 99% of bugs. If I see them outside then I'm okay with it; But if there's a bug in my house, and it's not paying any rent, I'm giving it the shoe.

centipedes dont BUG me, excuse the pun, because they are harmless, at least the ones in my area. its bugs with alot of eyes or round things on their backs that give me the creeps

well.. bugs with a lot of eyes aren't necessarily harmful either lol.
Most centipedes are actually venomous though.

anyways, to each his own. I get the creeps from a lot of legs, you get the creeps from a lot of eyes.

Here's a picture of some eyes for you:



And some legs for me:

ughhhhhh, I'm not getting any sleep tonight.