Dryococelus australis
Dryococelus australis, also known as the Lord Howe Island stick insect or tree lobster, is a phasmid which is sometimes called a land lobster. It was thought to have become extinct in 1930, but more were found in 2001. It no longer lives on Lord Howe Island which was its main habitat. It is now only found on the small rock island called Ball's Pyramid. With less than 30 of the stick insects left alive in the wild, it has been called "the rarest insect in the world".[1][2] Melbourne Zoo has been able to breed the stick insects with more than 9,000 hatched.[3] It is hoped that the insects will be released back on Lord Howe Island in the future.
| Lord Howe Island stick insect | |
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| Species: | D. australis
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| Dryococelus australis (Montrouzier, 1885)
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Dryococelus Australis Media
Lord Howe Island stick insect (Dryococelus australis) at Melbourne Museum.
References
- ↑ "Friends of the Phasmid". Archived from the original on 19 July 2008. Retrieved 15 December 2008.
- ↑ "Lord Howe Island Stick Insect". Retrieved 15 December 2008.
- ↑ "7.30 - ABC". abc.net.au. 22 March 2012. Retrieved 6 October 2012.
Other websites
- The Lord Howe Island Phasmid: an extinct species reborn Archived 2008-12-07 at the Wayback Machine by David Priddel, at the Foundation for National Parks & Wildlife
- Sticks and stones article, Sydney Morning Herald, 18 October 2003 (with picture)