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Project Noah Nature School
Emesaya brevipennis
I found this wonderful critter outside my house. I thought it was a walking stick, but someone correctly ID'd it as a bug. I don't see them very often, so this was a fun find.
Wow, that's really cool! I thought it was a walking stick as well. The thread-legged bugs I always find are tiny!
Thanks you this spotting, and to Project Noah, I now know that not everything that looks stick-bug-ish is a true stick insect. I saw one of these today and knew what it was. Thanks!
No problem Scott. There's so much variation in the insects it's tough to tell what order you're looking at sometimes! I found one of these guys a few months ago, so I've had a bit of exposure to them.
Hi Emma. That sure is an interesting plant. It suggests a squash from the shape of the leaves to the color of the flowers, but as others have pointed out, the flowers just don't look right for a squash. I'll see what I can come up with!
Scott, how did you arrive at this ID? It looks like a walking stick, but I think this might actually be a thread legged bug, a sub-family within the assassin bug family Reduviidae. I looked up some comparative pictures of the northern walking stick, and it has thicker legs and a slightly differently-shaped head than the insect in your picture. This insect also looks like it may have the raptorial front legs that the thread-legged bugs do, but it's not quite big enough for me to get a detailed enough look. I'll suggest an ID and post a link for you to take a look at, let me know what you think. I haven't taken the time to examine the species ID that I'm submitting, but right now I just want to narrow down whether it's a walking stick or a thread legged bug.
Spotted on Sep 2, 2011
Submitted on Sep 23, 2011
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