A wasp's sting ranks among the most painful in the world — it just doesn't last long

The tarantula hawk wasp paralyses tarantulas with a sting, then drags its still-living prey back to its burrow for its larva to eat from the inside. Entomologist Justin Schmidt, who built a pain index by letting insects sting him, rated the tarantula hawk's sting nearly the maximum 4 out of 4, advising that the only sensible response is 'to lie down and scream.' The agony is intense but brief, usually fading within about five minutes.

— Justin O. Schmidt, The Sting of the Wild — Johns Hopkins University Press, 2016