Stick Insect

Well, since it seems that there has been a recent stick-man/stick-figure drawing movement/fetish going on here of late while visiting various websites online, I thought that the least I could do was provide an image and a brief summary of the stick insect via Mother Nature. At any rate, many folks call these little creatures "walking sticks," but I didn't want to confuse this insect with a walking cane, so the term stick-insect should suffice. This little insect is one of the many marvels of nature. It resembles a small stick or twig while being exquisitely camouflaged in its natural surroundings and it enjoys this life of concealment to the fullest.

I remember first seeing these stick insects as a kid, and they were very hard to spot. Even after seeing what appeared to be a walking twig, it still took a few seconds for my eyes to adjust to what I was witnessing. Then, after a few shakes of the head, it was like "that stick is alive!" Ha-ha! These creatures are all slender and elongated. There are differences in detail and color between the species of this insect and, sometimes, even between the specimens of the same species. The majority of them reproduce without the need for a male and/or any effort on their part. This is a good thing because most stick insects are female anyway, going by what I have read in the past. They are easily kept and are excellent laboratory insects if you like studying them because of their style of reproduction. I've even heard that some people like to keep them as pets, too.

So if you're out in nature and are about to build a campfire, be careful when you are gathering kindling and small twigs or whatever.  As you may accidentally throw one of these little bastards into the fire; ha! Just kidding... I mean seriously, they are not that common or at least not in my neck of the woods.  Wait a minute, maybe they are and I just never notice them because I never wait for the little twigs to start walking off...  Oops!

Image Credit: funkman.org/animal/insect/stickinsect.html [Link is no longer valid]

Related Link:  http://exotic-life-creatures.blogspot.com/2015/01/praying-mantis-insect.html

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