Which Walkingstick?
June 27, 2010
The first two photos were taken last August. When we saw the first walking stick on the wall of our patio, we assumed it was a male. Then a week later I saw two of them mating (second photo, Bug Love) and realized the one on the patio had been the female.
I was weed eating in the garden yesterday and noticed movement ahead of me and then saw a walking stick climbing out of the way. I stopped what I was doing and bent to pick it up and move it so it wouldn’t get hurt, but noticed it was already missing some legs (see third photo). I’m pretty sure I *didn’t* do that with the weed eater (at least I hope I didn’t), but wonder how it could have happened and what are her chances now? Also, what kind of walking stick is it? I kept reading about striped, spitting walking sticks, but these don’t have stripes.
Jayne Wilson
Houston area, Texas

Mating Northern Two-Striped Walkingsticks

Hi Jayne,
You Walkingsticks are in the genus Anisomorpha, most likely the Northern Two-Striped Walkingstick based on photos posted to BugGuide.  You should handle with care.  BugGuide provided the following critical information:  “Members of this genus can deliver a chemical spray to the eyes that can cause corneal damage.“  You can get additional information on the Texas Walkingstick website.

Handle with Care: Walkingstick

0   I like This

Large ‘Alien’ looking Insect
April 18, 2010
Hi, the attached ‘insect’ was found dead in 2005 in Brisbane’s Western Suburbs. I thought I had lost the photos until now. Having never seen anything that so closely resembles the main character of the film Alien, and I am not talking about Sigourney Weaver here, I was wondering if you could id this insect as something natural rather than as a hungry visitor from another planet. The closest match I have been able to find is the ‘Goliath Stick Insect’ – really lame name by the way – but I have not seen any photo’s that match the hideous head and plus the doco states it grows to 7 inches not 9. It was reasonably weighty and as you can see, when straitened out, it was around 9 inches long. We found it on our driveway. There are a lot of Gum trees nearby. It’s abdomen was full of what looked like maggots and it was certainly putting out a strong ‘rotting meat’ odour so I assume it was fly-blown and not full of offspring. If it was offspring – you will find them at the city dump or wherever it is that the wheelie bins are emptied.
Thomas
Brisbane Western Suburbs

Goliath Stick Insect

Dear Thomas,
Your supposition that this is a Goliath Stick Insect, Eurycnema goliath, is correct.  Regarding the size discrepancy, we presume that the antennae and legs are not incorporated into the body length when determining size, and the Brisbane Insect website indicates that the Goliath Stick Insect grows to 210 mm or just over 8.25 inches.

Thanks Daniel,
Very strange looking insects. Scary in fact. I hope you have a great week. Thanks for the super fast reply and the confirmation.
Cheers,
Thomas

0   I like This

Possible Leaf Insect in Huatalco, Mexico
March 30, 2010
During a Central American cruise at the end of March, we encountered this beauty. Our best guess would be some sort of leaf insect. It was about 4 inches long and after a gentle proding with a stick, it exposed mantis like wings and flew a short distance, only to attempt to camouflage itself again. Being from Illinois, we have encountered many walking sticks and mantisis but coming across this guy was a real treat! Any help would be great.
Rob & Chris F.
Huatulco, Mexico

Phasmid from Mexico

Hi Rob and Chris,
We aren’t certain if this is a Phasmid or Walkingstick, or if it is a Katydid.  We will pester Piotr Naskrecki for the fourth time in two days for assistance.

Piotr Naskrecki writes right back
Hi Daniel,
This is Prisopus sp., a phasmid of the family Prisopodidae. There are 18
species in the genus, all rather similar.
Cheers,
Piotr

0   I like This

Inadvertent Carnage
February 22, 2010
Hi, WTB,
I’ve been enjoying getting acquainted with your site over the past few days.  Thanks to “kkroeker” and to Eric Eaton for the ID of the Humphrey’s Grasshoppers.
Here’s a sad photo of totally innocent, inadvertent carnage.  I had spent a little bit of time one morning in a small meadow where I usually find something to shoot, and where I am always looking for walking sticks because of past success in finding them there (Southern Arizona, foothills of the Santa Rita Mountains, about 4,400 ft, mid-September).
After returning home and a quick change of clothes, I was getting back into my car when I was shocked and saddened to see this poor specimen on my car seat.  Apparently, he had hitched a ride on the back of my pants and suffered the 30 minute ride home under a couple hundred pounds of oblivion.
The poor thing was not quite finished, but all the kings horses and all the kings men …
I had pretty much forgotten about the incident until a few days later when I was washing the white canvas pants that I had been wearing that morning and found a fairly detailed, shroud-of-Turin-like stain below the left rear pocket.
This was an arthropod whose life ended prematurely.
Denny Schreffler

Walkingstick crushed during a car ride

Hi again Denny,
Thanks so much for sharing this poignant tragedy.  It reminds us of a letter we received several years ago from a person who inadvertently stepped on a pair of mating Oil Beetles.  We believe this might be Diapheromera covilleae, the Creosote Bush Walkingstick or Greasewood Walkingstick based on images posted to BugGuide.

1   I like This