I find the strangest bugs on my Cannabis plants. 
This is a female Scorpion fly. The males are easily set apart from females as they have a curled "tail" that looks very much like a scorpion stinger.
The males will offer up insects to the female during mating season.
Although they do raid spider nests, spiders being good for the plants, they also consume pests that we don't want on our plants. So I rate this as a garden friendly bug.
They reportedly do not sting humans. I found this one to be quite camera friendly and cooperative while she was hanging out on my plant.
Here's some techy info on them:
Scorpion Fly
Panorpa communis
About
The scorpion fly is a strange looking insect which is found in gardens, hedgerows and woodland edges, particularly amongst nettles and Bramble. It has a long beak-like projection from its head that is uses to feed, scavenging on dead insects and frequently stealing the contents of spider's webs. It lives up to its name by sporting a scorpion-like tail, which the male uses in courtship displays. Adults usually mate at night, but mating can be a dangerous game for the male, who might easily be killed by the female. So he presents her with a nuptial gift of a dead insect or a mass of saliva to placate her - the equivalent of a box of chocolates! The resulting eggs are laid in the soil and the emerging larvae live and pupate at the soil surface.
How to identify
The scorpion fly has a black and yellow body, a reddish head with a long beak, dark patches on the wings and a scorpion-like tail which does not sting (the male has two claspers at the end for mating).
This is a female Scorpion fly. The males are easily set apart from females as they have a curled "tail" that looks very much like a scorpion stinger.
The males will offer up insects to the female during mating season.
Although they do raid spider nests, spiders being good for the plants, they also consume pests that we don't want on our plants. So I rate this as a garden friendly bug.
They reportedly do not sting humans. I found this one to be quite camera friendly and cooperative while she was hanging out on my plant.
Here's some techy info on them:
Scorpion Fly
Panorpa communis
About
The scorpion fly is a strange looking insect which is found in gardens, hedgerows and woodland edges, particularly amongst nettles and Bramble. It has a long beak-like projection from its head that is uses to feed, scavenging on dead insects and frequently stealing the contents of spider's webs. It lives up to its name by sporting a scorpion-like tail, which the male uses in courtship displays. Adults usually mate at night, but mating can be a dangerous game for the male, who might easily be killed by the female. So he presents her with a nuptial gift of a dead insect or a mass of saliva to placate her - the equivalent of a box of chocolates! The resulting eggs are laid in the soil and the emerging larvae live and pupate at the soil surface.
How to identify
The scorpion fly has a black and yellow body, a reddish head with a long beak, dark patches on the wings and a scorpion-like tail which does not sting (the male has two claspers at the end for mating).
