Like a super-powered sniper, Mallophora fautrix fixates on my Russian sage in full bloom. She waits patiently, not for the nectar, but for my honeybees that farm like a thousand seasonal workers, bobbing up and down in the purple blooms oblivious to the fact that they’re being watched. Grateful for the monsoon season’s bounty.
Unexpectedly, the bee killer swoops in like a hawk and snatches a bee mid-air!
Whether the bee is dispatched mercifully, I don’t know, but Mallophora fautrix soon settles in the crook of a nearby vine to suck the honeybee’s fluids like a warm mango lassi on a blazing summer day. She luxuriates, wickedly sipping for nearly an hour on her prey. And then drops the carcass to the ground before resuming her ominous vigil.
mistress beek 
Yikes! I’ve never seen a bug like that eating our bees!
Great photo. That is one scary bug.
Hard to believe, right? It’s a dangerous world out there 😉
I wouldn’t put up with that if I were you. I think it’s time to call in the bug cavalry – or maybe bribe some birds to teach those bugs a lesson they won’t forget.