New giant stick insect species is Australia's heaviest, scientists say
The new species weighs 44 grams (1.55 oz), about the same as a golf ball, and is 40 cm (15.75 inches) long.
James Cook University's Angus Emmott, who helped identify the new Acrophylla alta species, said the creature's large size could be an evolutionary response to its cool, wet habitat.
'Their body mass likely helps them survive the colder conditions, and that's why they've developed into this large insect over millions of years,' he was quoted as saying in a media release.
'From what we know to date, this is Australia's heaviest insect.'
The new stick insect was discovered in the canopies of the mountainous Wet Tropics region of Far North Queensland, in Australia's northeast.
The remote habitat was probably also why it had remained undiscovered for so long, Emmott said.
'It's restricted to a small area of high-altitude rainforest, and it lives high in the canopy. So, unless you get a cyclone or a bird bringing one down, very few people get to see them,' he said.
The stick insect's distinctive eggs also helped scientists identify it as a new species.
'Every species of stick insect has their own distinct egg style,' Emmott said.
'They've all got different surfaces and different textures and pitting, and they can be different shapes. Even the caps on them are all very unique.'
Two specimens have been added to the Queensland Museum's collection to aid future research.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
Prolonged hot weather may be fuelling rise in obesity rates, study suggests
BLAME your belly on the sunshine, say scientists - as hot weather makes us gain weight. A study in Australia estimated that someone's risk of being obese increases by 0.2 per cent for every day of the year that is warmer than 30C. Sweltering summer days might slow our metabolism by wrecking our sleep, put us off exercising, and have us reaching for fattening fizzy drinks to cool off. The UK has enjoyed an early start to summer this year, with eleven 30C days so far. The Met Office says 2025 is one of only three years on record to have had so many by July – with 2018 and 1976. Research led by the University of Adelaide compared rates of obesity and weather across eight Australian states between 2006 and 2022. It found citizens in the hottest areas were more likely to be obese and as an area's temperatures increased so did the number of fat people. Writing in the journal Economics & Human Biology, the study authors said: 'High temperatures can make outdoor activities and physical activities less appealing, leading to a sedentary lifestyle which has been shown to increase obesity. 'Further, extreme temperatures can cause heat-related sleep disturbances that influence metabolism. 'Temperature shocks can also affect the body's metabolism and appetite. 'High temperatures may suppress appetite in the short term, but can also lead to increased consumption of high-calorie, sugary beverages for cooling and hydration.' Two thirds of British adults are overweight and about 30 per cent are obese, raising their risk of cancer, dementia and heart diseases. I put my 11-year-old daughter on fat jabs after she got bullied for her weight - people judge me but I don't care The researchers suggested people in areas that are normally cold – such as the UK – might be more vulnerable. They added: 'We find that the effects of extreme temperature on obesity are more pronounced for people living in states with general cold climates and for older people compared to younger people.' 1
Daily Mail
8 hours ago
- Daily Mail
That's not a stick it's a branch! New species of supersized stick insect discovered in Australia
A giant new species of stick insect with a supersized wingspan has been discovered in a remote rainforest in Australia. The stick insect, which is around 40cm (15.75 inches) long, was discovered in high-altitude trees in the mountainous Wet Tropics region of North Queensland. The female specimen weighed 44g, less than a golf ball, but significantly heftier than Australia's heaviest insect, the giant wood moth, which gets up to 30g. Footage shows the incredible wingspan of the stick insect, which is a similar length to a small bird. The new species, named Acrophylla alta, is roughly the same size as a barn owl or a wood pigeon. James Cook University's Angus Emmott, who helped identify the species, said the creature's large size could be an evolutionary response to its cool, wet habitat. He said: 'Their body mass likely helps them survive the colder conditions, and that's why they've developed into this large insect over millions of years.' The remote habitat was probably also why it had remained undiscovered for so long, Emmott added. Emmott continued: 'They live high up in the rainforest canopy, and accessing that is almost impossible. 'You've got to wait until, for instance, a bird knocks one down or you get a big storm and they get knocked down. It's very, very hard to find them in situ.' He added that while females have wings, they are 'not really great flyers' because of their 'heavy bodies'. The next step in identifying and eventually naming the species is finding a male, which is proving difficult, and not just because they are as thin as a stick. Male stick insects tend to be significantly smaller and are so visually distinct from females that they have previously been regarded not only as a different species, but as a different genus altogether. Emmott said: 'You really need to find the male copulating with the female. 'You know what it is then, and you collect the eggs and you can actually ascertain that they're one of the same thing.' The eggs of the newly-discovered stick insect were key to its identification, as no two species' eggs are the same. Emmott said: 'Every species of stick insect has their own distinct egg style. 'They've all got different surfaces and different textures and pitting, and they can be different shapes. Even the caps on them are all very unique.' The stick insect specimen, along with another female, are now in the Queensland Museum's collection. Stick insects tend to be quite still in daylight hours to avoid being preyed on by birds, so researchers traipse through the rainforest at night with head torches for the best chance of glimpsing them. Currently, their average lifespan remains uncertain. Emmott said: 'We don't actually don't know that yet, but I imagine only a couple of years maximum. 'Because, yes, there's a lot of pressure on them with birds looking for them and eating them all the time, and I guess that's why they're so cryptic.' The depth and density of life in Queensland's rainforests mean untold numbers of insect species remain undefined or undiscovered. Emmott continued: 'Up here in the tropics, in northern Australia, we've got so many insects that are as yet undescribed. 'For instance, I've got an undescribed cicada in the garden here that a friend of mine is in the process of describing, and I've been working on the moths up here as quite a number of them are undescribed.'
Times
9 hours ago
- Times
Cassowary crossing — how Australia is tackling its roadkill crisis
The cassowary is a big, violent, flightless creature that is widely considered the world's most dangerous bird. It is no match, however, for a more powerful beast: the Australian motorist. Now scientists are racing against time to save the bird's dwindling numbers from a roadkill crisis. Cassowaries draw so many tourists to Australia's north that some estimate their value to the local economy at A$1 million (£488,000) per bird — meaning the fatal running-over of 24 of them last year was costly in more ways than one. A trial using artificial intelligence to alert drivers to the birds, which can grow to 6ft 2in (1.9m) tall, has reduced the number of deaths on a Far North Queensland road by more than a third. Its success has raised hopes the technology can be adapted to recognise other species and cut Australia's annual roadkill death toll, which is estimated at ten million and believed to be the world's highest in relation to the human population.
