We were sitting on the couch the other night whilst minding Hamish, my mother's dog, when I noticed something weird tracking along the white fur on his back. There can't be too much wrong with my eyesight since it turned out to be an first-instar stick insect, perhaps the progeny of the large mature one that dropped in about this time last year. Everything travels in cycles and spirals and circles.
It was about 2cm long, the smallest we've ever seen in person; it's standing on the end of my thumb in the pics below.
It was about 2cm long, the smallest we've ever seen in person; it's standing on the end of my thumb in the pics below.
After consulting our copy of The Stick Insects of New Zealand by the Prof J.T Salmon, we suspect this is either a day- old nymph of the locally common Black Spined Stick Insect, or possibly Clitarchus hookeri. How privileged we were to have such a miniature wonder gazing back at us with its faceted lavender eyes; it was perfect in every respect.
| I think the Lovely R did really well to capture this busy little beast in godawful light with his macro lens extension, particularly since it kept busting out its wobbly stick-dance. Happily, there seem to be more phasmids in our yard every time spring rolls around in the last few years. Some adults overwinter, but it's generally a new generation mimicking the foliage on your native flora, which, along with increasing bird numbers, says a few encouraging things about our local environment. If you still use pesticides in your garden or around the house, please give a thought to everything that will be affected by them. A little restraint can work miracles. |  |
RSS Feed
