remarkable big insect
May 25, 2010
spring photo in a little village near the sea
what is this???
greece
We believe this is a Shieldback Katydid in the subfamily Tettigoniinae. We will contact an expert in Orthopterans, Piotr Naskrecki, to see if he is able to provide a species name or correction.
Piotr Naskrecki provides an answer
Hi Daniel,
This beauty is called Callimenus macrogaster (Tettigoniidae: Bradyporinae.) Whether it is a shield-back is still a matter of discussion, although recent molecular data indicate that Bradyporinae may indeed by closely related to shield-backs (Tettigoniinae.) This species has an interesting defense mechanism, and if perturbed squirts hemolymph at its attacker.
Piotr