Imagine stumbling upon a creature so enormous it barely looks real, yet it has been living right under our noses, high in the trees of a remote jungle. Australian scientists recently announced just such a find: a brand new species of giant stick insect.
This amazing insect, named Acrophylla alta, was discovered deep in an Australian rainforest. It’s a real giant, stretching 40 centimeters long. To give you an idea of its size, it weighs 44 grams. That’s about the same as a golf ball.
Professor Angus Emmott from James Cook University shared the news this past Thursday. He stated that this new stick insect is the heaviest ever found in Australia. It’s a remarkable discovery for the continent.
The professor, who works at the university, believes the insect’s massive size is a clever trick of evolution. It adapted to the "cold and humid" conditions on the Atherton Plateau. This area is in Northern Australia, about 50 kilometers southwest of the city of Cairns, which is where the insect was found.
"Their body mass probably helps them survive in colder conditions," Emmott explained. "That’s why they’ve grown into these big insects over millions of years." It’s a classic example of nature’s ingenuity.
Finding this creature wasn’t easy. The professor at James Cook University explained that its remote home and special habitat kept it hidden for so long. "They are restricted to a small area of high-altitude rainforest," he noted. "And they live high in the canopy. So, unless a cyclone or a bird knocks one down, very few people ever see them." It’s like finding a secret in plain sight.
Interestingly, the eggs of these stick insects also played a big role in confirming they were a new species. The professor pointed this out as a key detail. While it’s the heaviest in Australia, it’s not the world record holder. According to Guinness World Records, the heaviest insect ever recorded is a giant weta. This insect, similar to a grasshopper, is native to New Zealand. It weighed a hefty 71 grams.