A team of Australian scientists claim to have found a new species of bastan insect in the remote tropical forests in northern Queensland-and could be the heaviest insect in the country.
According to, the insects-paualso known as canesmix with the environment that surrounds them, looking like branches.
About 15.75 centimeters long, the new species, called Acrophylla alta, Described in Zootaxa magazine, it looks like a very large branch.
However, the longest known to know can reach more than 20 centimeters, but even these are lighter than the Recently discovered species.
The “superdimensed” A. Alta Weigh about 44 gramsthat is, a little less than a golf ball. “From what we know until the date, this It is the heaviest insect in Australia”, Angus Emmottstudy co -author and researcher at James Cook University in Australia in a statement.
The insect dwells in the high -altitude tropical rainforest, far above the treetops, which may explain not only why it has not been discovered so far but also its size.
“It’s a cool, humid environment where they live,” explains Emmott. “Their body mass probably helps them survive the colder conditions, which is why they have become in this Great insect over millions of years”.
Ross Couplandan expert in wildlife and co -author of the study, received a photo of someone’s giant insect on social networks, reports Elemarni Close-Brown no Guardian.
Coupland and emmott spent many nights looking for the dodge insect and were eventually rewarded when they found a female specimen. They collected the creature for later study.
“We looked at the eggs after they put some eggs and we were absolutely sure that it was a new species“EMMOTT disse.
Each species of insect-pau has unique eggs. Since then, two more female specimens have been found, but investigators have not yet been able to identify a male of the species. This is because insects males are smaller than females And they have a very different aspect.
“You have to find the male to copulate with the female,” explains Emmott, “so we know what it is, we collect the eggs and we can see that it is the same thing.”
The discovery enhances Importance of looking at higher land – And higher branches – to discover new species.
“Treet cups are not well studied, so it is possible that there are a lot more species in the treetops than we can imagine,” he says Peter Valentinean environmental scientist at James Cook University who was not involved in the study.
Adds that the study underlines the need to finance the long run Efforts to protect tropical forests of threats such as invading insects.
“We cannot conserve a species if we do not know that it exists or where it occurs,” says Nicole Gunterentomologist at the Queensland Museum that was not involved in the investigation. Gunter calculates that about 70% of insect species Australia have not yet been formally described.
For now, Emmott hopes to find a male and find out more information about this heavy insect. “It would be really good know how abundant they are And exactly where they happen, because it will help us keep them, ”said the researcher,” the frightening is that we may be losing species even before we know they exist. “
Teresa Oliveira Campos, Zap //
