These Asian giant hornets, which the Japanese call "giant sparrow bees," can grow up to five centimetres long, with a six-millimetre long stinger.
Japanese entomologist Masato Ono described their sting to National Geographic, saying that it "feels like a hot nail" being driven into your flesh.
The pain of the sting itself is the least of the worries from these hornets, though. The venom they inject after a sting is highly toxic, sending anyone who might be allergic into anaphylactic shock, but even those who aren't allergic can still die from the sting due to kidney failure.
The hornets are found throughout eastern Asian and they're especially common in Japan, where they cause between 30-40 deaths a year.
