Armed with sharp vision and incredible agility, the common awl robberfly (Neoitamus cyanurus) is a master aerial hunter of the forest edge. Measuring 12 to 19 millimeters long, females sport an unusually long, needle-sharp tip extending from their tail. This “awl-shaped” tool isn’t a weapon for stinging, but a specialized organ used to carefully slip eggs inside tightly wrapped tree buds! Dressed in stylish bicolored legs—with dark thighs and bright orange shins—these fierce ambushers perch in dappled sunlight, waiting to swoop down on flying moths, beetles, and smaller flies. Capable of overpowering prey nearly as large as themselves, they are true acrobats of the canopy. While completely harmless and docile toward humans, they command respect as nature’s aerial guardians. I met this clever mid-sized hunter in a wide meadow close to Akalla, Sweden. After several cautious approaches that sent it darting away, my patience finally paid off with a single, pin-sharp photograph!