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Walkingstick from Honduras might be new species!!!

Posted by bugman November 19th, 2011 at 4:09 pm

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Walkingsticks

Honduras: Huge beetle
Location: El Piliguin, Honduras, Central America
November 17, 2011 11:38 am
Evening Mr. Bugman, I recently encountered this huge beetle in Piliguin Mountain, Honduras, Central America. It appears to be a Rove Beetle of some sort, however it far exceeds the size descriptions i have come across. It was hidden under rocky terrain and the approximate length was around 9.0-10.0 cm. (90-100 mm). Thank you in advance icon smile Walkingstick from Honduras might be new species!!!
Signature: Medjai

phasmid honduras medjai 300x206 Walkingstick from Honduras might be new species!!!

Walkingstick

Deam Medjai,
This positively gorgeous creature is a Walkingstick or Phasmid.  Our initial search did not provide any conclusive species or genus identification, but your individual reminds us of an Ecuadorean Walkingstick we posted in the past from the genus Monticomorpha.  Most of the species in the genus have a range limited to Andean highlands, but your email indicates that this individual was found on a mountain.  We suspect your individual is closely related and perhaps a member of the same genus, and possibly an undescribed species or a known species with an undocumented range.  We hope we are able to turn up something conclusive for you.  The Phasmatodea.com site has some photos of mounted specimens and names of the genus members.

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Walkingstick

Often red and black coloration is considered aposomatic or warning coloration, and there are Walkingsticks in the family Pseudophasmatidae, that includes Monticomorpha, that are capable of spraying a noxious chemical with amazing accuracy, including the North American Muskmare.

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Walkingstick

Update
December 6, 2011
A comment posted today indicates that this lovely Walkingstick is in the genus Autolyca and that chances are good it is a species new to science.

 

 

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Comments 8

  1. Bruno Kneubuehler wrote:

    this red stick insect belongs to the genus Autolyca (ID by my friend Oskar Conle, who is the main phasmid taxonomist for this region).
    Most probably this is a new species.
    @Medjai – could you please share a more precise location where you found this one. You can contact me on my email adress:
    gopala@bluewin.ch

    Posted 06 Dec 2011 at 3:05 pm
  2. bugman wrote:

    Thanks for the correction on this. This posting is recent enough that we might be able to locate contact information for Medjai.

    Posted 07 Dec 2011 at 8:47 am
  3. Medjai wrote:

    Good day,

    Thank you for your interest and follow-up.

    Seems to me like it’s still an undescribed species also. I found him/her while mowing some brush in a friend’s mountain house, I immediately stopped mowing so i wouldn’t hurt him, also found a few tarantulas in the near surrounding.

    Since you ask for a more precise location, I could post some coordinates here later today? Piliguin mountain is a pine forest reserve just beside La Tigra National Park, located in the heart of Honduras, Central America.

    I’ve subscribed to this thread so I can answer imemdiately from my mobile device.

    Good day to you all.

    Posted 07 Dec 2011 at 11:09 am
  4. bugman wrote:

    Dear Medjai,
    Thanks for supplying additional information.

    Posted 07 Dec 2011 at 9:55 pm
  5. Bruno Kneubuehler wrote:

    @ Medjai
    Thanks for the info, now I have an idea where the location is. Are you still there, or would you still have the opportunity to visite this site again?
    If we could get material of this species, then we would describe it (if it is really a new species) – and give it your name. Best would be eggs, so that I can breed them in vivo. If this is of interest to you, the please write to my email adress which is mentioned above. Then I can send you detailed infos on how to collect some eggs.
    Also you would give us permission to post your photos (with your name) on our scientific site on phasmids (www.phasmatodea.com), then you can also send these to my email adress.

    @Bugman
    your ID was not totally off, Autolyca and Monticomorpha are quite closely related species – and they look quite similar :)

    Posted 08 Dec 2011 at 2:36 pm
  6. Medjai wrote:

    Hello,

    I go there often, I would be interested in helping describe this species.

    I’ll send you the pics and of course you have permission to post them on your site. By the way I checked out phasmatodea.com and found a similar species. (Agathemera > Elegans)

    Posted 08 Dec 2011 at 4:20 pm
  7. Bruno Kneubuehler wrote:

    Dear Medjai
    yes are right. The coloration and habitus of the male of A. elegans looks somewhat similar to your Autolyca species. But taxonomically they are rather distantly related, asa they belong to different suborders within the order Phasmatodea. Agathemera are high altitude species from southern America (up to 4000m).
    Also the specimen in your photos is actually a fully grown female specimen. The male will be a bit smaller, maybe only about 6-7 cm.

    So I wait for your email, then I will send you also the details how to collect the eggs.
    Bruno

    Posted 09 Dec 2011 at 12:01 am
  8. Bruno Kneubuehler wrote:

    Hola Medjai
    just in case you have already sent an email with photos of Phasmatodea to me, then it has not arrived here…. Sometimes they get lost in in cyper Nirvana
    Alternatively you can also contact me via Facebook:
    http://www.facebook.com/phasmatodea
    looking forward to hear from you again
    Bruno

    Posted 15 Dec 2011 at 2:42 pm

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