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Sawtoothed Stick Insect
Prisopus berosus
-2.15, -77.69
Field Notes
Description:
This is a medium sized stick insect of 4.5 in. (115 mm) whose mix of drab green and grey-white colors perfectly mimic lichens. It can also make itself nearly flat as it hugs a surface making it nearly invisible. See if you can find it in Foto #4 as it sits on a pipe after release. The patches on the ventral side of the thorax (Foto #3) are glands that secrete chemicals that produce a burning sensation or odors as a means of defense.
Habitat:
Found in a house in the Amazon rainforest of SE Ecuador (700 masl).
Notes:
I noticed something “large” flying around inside our house one evening. It came to light on a pair of sock draped over the back of a chair and it took me a minute to figure out what it was. One of the coolest sticks I’ve ever seen. After taking pictures I took it outside where it lit on a pipe at the corner of the house, and, for all practical purposes became invisible.
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