stick insect
Leaf
The order Phasmida, also known as Phasmida, includes the most camouflaged species in the insect world, namely the stick insect and the leaf worm [pronounced xiū]. The name Phasmida is derived from the Greek word "phasma", which means "apparition" in English and "ghost" in Chinese. Some entomologists also write down the name of this purpose as Phasmatodea.
First, the morphological description
Of all the insects of the order Of all insects, perhaps no other species of insect is easier to identify than insects of the order. Insects can use their unique camouflage to fool predators. Stick insects have long legs and antennae, and their whole body looks like the branches or sticks of a tree. Leaf insects are usually flatter and more colorful than stick insects, and look almost identical to the leaves of the plants they eat.
Most of the stick insects and all the leafy insects of the order prefer to live in habitats with tropical climates. Some stick insects can inhabit cooler temperate regions, where they generally overwinter as eggworms. Almost all of the insects that are distributed in North America do not have wings. Insects are nocturnal and foraging, so if you can see them during the day, they are most likely resting (sleeping).
Stick insects and leafy insects have hard bodies and slender feet, which are suitable for crawling on the surface of the substrate, called walking feet. But they are moving more slowly. The body of the leaf is often relatively flat, with a flat back surface, simulated as a leaf. Insects of the order have segmented antennae, and depending on the species, there are 8 short sections and 100 sections long. The appendages of some stick insects and leafy insects can mimic the spines or other parts of a plant, making them appear closer to natural plant branches or leaves. All insects are plant-eating species that feed on the leaves of plants and have chewing mouthpieces specifically designed to break up plant matter.
Metamorphosis undergoes simple metamorphosis in the form of metamorphosis, and only three insect forms of growth change are experienced in the lifetime of eggs, nymphs and adults. When eggs are laid after mating, the eggs usually fall to the ground. Some species of leafy insects perform parthenogenesis, and females can produce offspring without fertilization by males. However, these offspring are almost all females, so the males in these species are very rare or non-existent.
Habitat and distribution
Stick insects and leafy insects prefer to live in forests or bushes, they need leaves as their food source, and trees as their protective background. Worldwide, there are an estimated 2500 to 3300 species of insects.
Third, some of the main families in the order
1. Timemidae
Commonly known as timema walking sticks.
2. Heteronemiidae
Commonly known as common walking sticks.
3. Pseudophasmatidae
Commonly known as striped walking sticks.
4. Phasmatidae
Commonly known as winged walking sticks.
Fourth, interesting insects
1. Heterotypic genus ().
The genus's insects are often referred to as "devil-riders" or "musk-mares" (musk-mares). They can spray terpene-like chemicals in their defenses, which can make the attacker briefly blind.
2. Lord Howe Island stick insect is an indigenous species in Australia and is considered the rarest insect in the world. Previously thought to have gone extinct before 1930, they were rediscovered in 2001 and the population of Lord Howe Island stick insects is currently estimated to be less than 30.
Lord Howe Island stick insect
3. Geshee ( ) is a species of insect that lives in the rainforest of Borneo , Kalimantan Island , and was once considered the longest insect in the world on record , with the longest body being 54 .6cm. However, this record was later broken by the discovery of a female giant stick insect in West Malaysia, which is the longest insect in the world, with a real length of up to 55 .6cm.
West Malaysia's female macrocopoda is the longest insect in the world. The previous world record was that it held this record for a century.
4. Macleay's spectre, a giant species called Macleay's spectre, is also a leaf-eating insect, and after the female lays the eggs, the ants carry their eggs to their nests like they collect seeds. These hatched young nymphs mimic the form of ants, which run even faster than the fine stink ants. In the insect world, many young larvae of insects will be mimicked as ants, so many entomological professionals often call such young insects as ant-age insects.
Macleay's spectre (Macleay's spectre)