and sizes . . . 
is it possible to have a favourite stick insect? if yes then the macleay's spectre stick would be mine!! 
stick insects (known among those who study these creatures as phasmatodea) are very clever creatures in their ability to mimic the features of their surroundings . . . . here's one that melds right in . . .
the walking stick enjoys a special relationship with ants in some locations as is described and shown in this video . . .
some stick insects can be extraordinarily long and the natural history museum is hosting a video in which a variety of bugs are shared and discussed. among them is one that is apparently the longest stick insect in the world.
seen here in its specimen case, it is over half a metre long. i like insects or "bugs" as north americans call them. i get why they're here and i like their incredible diversity. here's the video from the natural history museum.
4 comments:
And so, it sounds like the 'stick insect' is actually quite a destructive little creature, did I interpret that video correctly?
I remember calling them 'walking sticks' when I was a child.
Of what value to the ecosystem is it then, Steven? (I must have missed something in your presentation.)
hi goldenrod! the stick insects - like all living things - have their place in the larger ecology. the stick insects appear to be hungry and can eat lots of undergrowth. in turn they are food for a variety of predators. take them away and the whole is damaged. here's a good site that has much more information than i can provide. http://www.earthlife.net/insects/phasmida.html
steven
It wasn't your presentation, Steven, it was the YouTube video. Twice it's mentioned that they are 'up in the trees eating leaves' ... ("Spends all its time" and "much of its adult life up in the trees stolidly eating leaves") ... just made me think of all these nice healthy green leaves being eaten by 'stick insects' ... there was no mention whatsoever in the video of them eating lots of undergrowth.
I mentally pictured locusts (certainly nowhere near the same as what you were talking about here, but it's where my mind went) utterly destroying vegetation and crops.
My ignorance, Steven. Should just have kept my question to myself.
not ignorance goldenrod, curiousity. that's what this blog is all about - following a whim, a question. i don't think that they are quite like locusts but i was reading something about keeping them as pets and how you need a good stock of the green stuff to keep them well-fed!
steven
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