There are some mighty big bugs in Italy. Some of the wasps I’ve seen are huge, and scary. Luckily, for those of you who are like me: not the world’s greatest bug fans, these miniature giants of the Italian bug world are not often to be spotted.
But they are there, and, boy, are some of them big beasties. The beast you are about to see, which was apparently some 3 inches (7cm) in length, and thus not exactly tiny in bug terms, was found beetling around the Carso area of Italy.
For the uninitiated, the Carso zone is also, and perhaps better, known as the kras, karst, or karst plateau. In actual fact, it is this limestone plateau area that straddles the border between Italy and Slovenia which gave the world the term Karst topography. End of geography lesson.
Aside from being home to big bugs, the Carso area of Italy, which can be found near Trieste, also happens to be rather unspoilt and beautiful, like so much of Italy.
And if you visit the Carso, and are really lucky, or unlucky, depending on your point of view, you might even get to spot one of these not-so-little fellows.
Stag Beetle on the Wing in Italy’s Carso area by Drag’n’Drop
Stop reading, start speaking
Stop translating in your head and start speaking Italian for real with the only audio course that prompt you to speak.
He’s a fearsome beast, isn’t he? Fearless too, as the big bug tried to attack intrepid cameraman Drag’n’Drop, who, surviving the attack, kindly added this image of Italy to Italy Chronicles’ Everything Italy Flickr group. Thanks Drag’n’Drop.
More of Drag’n’Drop‘s photographic work can be seen on his (or her?) Flickr page.
Let the Carso Area Bug You
If you fancy photographing fearsome, and fearless, bugs like the splendid specimen in the photo above, then why not head to Italy’s Carso area? You are sure to get a buzz out of the experience.
There, I’ve written about Italy and I haven’t even mentioned Berlusconi once. Rats, just have.
Have a good weekend.
