Amateur bug photographer John Hallmén has a bit of a thing for bizarre looking insects. Over the last three years he's spent hours trawling Nackareservatet nature reserve near his home in Stockholm, Sweden looking for tiny creatures to catch on camera. The result is an impressive set of photos featuring some of the world's best-looking insects. Not best looking as in sexy. Obviously...
1. PUSS MOTH CATERPILLAR
What: The puss moth caterpillar (cerura vinula)
Home: Europe and Northern Africa
Did you know: These colourful bugs (often found roaming around the UK) got their name thanks to the cat-like appearance of their adult counterparts.
2. BLUE DAMSELFLY
What: The blue damselfly
Home: Europe
Did you know: Gangs of these vibrant little critters can often be found perching gregariously on emergent plant stems, all facing the same way.
3. JEWEL WASP
What: The Jewel Wasp
Home: South Asia, Africa and the Pacific islands
Did you know: The jewel wasp (AKA the emerald cockroach wasp) has gained a bit of a rep for it's unique reproductive behaviour, which involves stinging a cockroach and using it as a host for its larvae.
4. HORSE FLY
What: The horse fly (chrysops)
Home: Worldwide
Did you know: The horse fly is best known for its ferocious bite. Over the summer, one of these pesky chaps had a chomp on Mollie King from The Saturdays, leaving her on crutches and unable to perform at T4 on the Beach. Tragic.
5. FEEDING HOVERFLY
What: The feeding hoverfly
Home: Anywhere except Antartica
Did you know: Hoverfly larvae are greedy little critters. The hungry young bugs have been known to scoff up to 600 aphids (plant lice) before becoming adults. Rather them than us.
Photo credit: John Hallmén/Barcroft Media
