World's Heaviest Insect Discovered! In New Zealand!

Discussion in 'Techforge' started by $corp, Dec 1, 2011.

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  1. $corp

    $corp Dirty Old Chinaman

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    Man, look at the way it chomps down on that carrot! And I guess the thing on its tail isn't a stinger, though it looks like it could belong on a scorpion.

    I wonder what sort of sound it makes.
     
    $corp, Dec 1, 2011
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  2. Lanzman

    Lanzman Vast, Cool and Unsympathetic Formerly Important

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    "Gimme another carrot or I'll chew your face off, puny human!"
     
    Lanzman, Dec 1, 2011
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  3. oldfella1962

    oldfella1962 the only real finish line

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    I don't know if I'd want to stay in a motel there - the bed-bugs must be outrageous! :santa_cheesy:
     
    oldfella1962, Dec 1, 2011
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  4. Tamar Garish

    Tamar Garish Wanna Snuggle? Deceased Member

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    :yuck:

    This is why I will always want to live in a 4 seasons climate. Insects in warm climates grow to insane size.

    Millions of years ago when the world was hotter, there was some truly monstrous bugs.
     
    Tamar Garish, Dec 1, 2011
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  5. Lanzman

    Lanzman Vast, Cool and Unsympathetic Formerly Important

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    Actually, that had more to do with the atmosphere having a greater concentration of oxygen than it does now. Tho obviously warmer temperatures mean various critters expend less energy on simply keeping warm and can devote more to stuff like growing.
     
    Lanzman, Dec 1, 2011
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  6. Uncle Albert

    Uncle Albert Part beard. Part machine.

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    :shock:

    FUCKING KILL IT WITH FIRE.
     
    Uncle Albert, Dec 2, 2011
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  7. Diacanu

    Diacanu Comicmike. Writer

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    I want one!
    I wanna see it fight my cats!
    :polarslam2:
     
    Diacanu, Dec 2, 2011
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  8. Marso

    Marso High speed, low drag.

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    There may be a xenomorph involved...
     
    Marso, Dec 2, 2011
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  9. Mrs. Albert

    Mrs. Albert demented estrogen monster

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    that is quite possibly the scariest looking bug i have ever seen. :shock:
     
    Mrs. Albert, Dec 2, 2011
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  10. Speck

    Speck Dark Brotherhood

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    The article said that it grew to that size because the tiny island it was on hs no natural predators. While in the Main islands, European introduced rats killed them all off.
     
    Speck, Dec 2, 2011
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  11. Volpone

    Volpone Zombie Hunter

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    Sweet mother of Elvis! I know what it takes to kill a Hawaiian cockroach. And those fuckers are only a little larger than this bugger's head. I don't think I'd go after this thing with anything less than a 9mm.
     
    Volpone, Dec 2, 2011
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  12. Mirah

    Mirah Powerful Vagina Energy

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    I don't think it is really chomping on the carrot. At least that is what I tell myself.
     
    Mirah, Dec 2, 2011
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  13. Dan Leach

    Dan Leach Climbing Staff Member Moderator

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    Not so much driven by the heat, but by much higher O2 concentrations (as high as 35% in the cambrian) allowed for massive insects.
    The most impressive/scary has to be the dragonfly with a 1 1/2 foot wingspan.....
     
    Dan Leach, Dec 2, 2011
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  14. Forbin

    Forbin Do you feel fluffy, punk?

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    If it was just discovered, how come the special effects company that worked on Lord of the Rings is named after it?
     
    Forbin, Dec 2, 2011
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  15. Zombie

    Zombie dead and loving it

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    Because there are "over 70 types of Weta species in New Zealand" according to the article in the OP. So it's safe to say they've known about that type of bug just not one that freaking big.

    :marathon:
     
    Zombie, Dec 2, 2011
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  16. Lanzman

    Lanzman Vast, Cool and Unsympathetic Formerly Important

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    Ummm . . .
    :shakefist:
     
    Lanzman, Dec 2, 2011
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  17. garamet

    garamet "The whole world is watching."

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    It's a grasshopper. Granted, a very large grasshopper, but grasshoppers don't bite, they don't crawl up from the bathtub drain or infest your kitchen cabinets, so I don't see what all the revulsion is about. Is it just the "Eww, it's got six legs!!!" thing? :shrug:
     
    garamet, Dec 2, 2011
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  18. Uncle Albert

    Uncle Albert Part beard. Part machine.

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    The fact that it has six thighs as big around as my pinkie finger is a heavy contributing factor, yes.
     
    Uncle Albert, Dec 2, 2011
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  19. Dan Leach

    Dan Leach Climbing Staff Member Moderator

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    I rather like it. Insects used to bother me a bit, but ever since I got a macro lens and started taking close-up shots I find them more interesting than scary.
     
    Dan Leach, Dec 2, 2011
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  20. El Chup

    El Chup Fuck Trump Deceased Member Git

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    So where's the big internet tough guy routine now? Scared of a big bad bug are we? :rotfl:
     
    El Chup, Dec 2, 2011
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  21. Scott Hamilton Robert E Ron Paul Lee

    Scott Hamilton Robert E Ron Paul Lee Straight Awesome

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    It says heaviest, not largest.

    What else is out there man!
     
    Scott Hamilton Robert E Ron Paul Lee, Dec 2, 2011
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  22. El Chup

    El Chup Fuck Trump Deceased Member Git

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    El Chup, Dec 2, 2011
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  23. Lanzman

    Lanzman Vast, Cool and Unsympathetic Formerly Important

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    Don't start nothin', won't be nothin'.


    Actually, it seems to be a cricket.
     
    Lanzman, Dec 2, 2011
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  24. Mrs. Albert

    Mrs. Albert demented estrogen monster

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    i dislike all bugs, but have a genuine phobia of grasshoppers, crickets, and june bugs. as in....i've slept in my car because i was too scared to walk to my door during june bug season. :( it really doesn't matter that they don't bite. i'd rather hold a venomous snake and take my chances than have a grasshopper on me. i do think they are cool to look at though, as long as they are properly contained behind glass....and dead.
     
    Mrs. Albert, Dec 2, 2011
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  25. garamet

    garamet "The whole world is watching."

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    Huh. So it sings, too? Even better. :cool:

    Hmm, sounds like a bad past experience, because none of these are harmful, and crickets are downright pleasant.

    Now, cicadas are annoying as hell. Harmless, but that buzz-saw noise can drive you right over the edge on a hot, humid East Coast night. :overreaction:

    The only species that creeps me out is centipedes. They're supposedly mildly venomous (dunno; never got that close to one), but what's creepy is that (A) they lurk under things and in dark corners, i.e., basements and garages, and (B) they zigzag, instead of running in a straight line, so when you disturb one, like, say, having the nerve to move something in your own garage, you don't know if they're going to run away from you or squiggle up your leg. Not pleasant, at all.
     
    garamet, Dec 2, 2011
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  26. Uncle Albert

    Uncle Albert Part beard. Part machine.

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    Noisy insects need to fucking die twice. :mad:

    Used to have a basement bedroom when I was a kid, and the these big red crickets would find their way in. Had enough sleep interrupted hunting them down that anything looking like this is an automatic murder victim.

    [​IMG]
     
    Uncle Albert, Dec 2, 2011
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  27. Dan Leach

    Dan Leach Climbing Staff Member Moderator

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    Wait on a sec, aren't you an arachnophobe?
     
    Dan Leach, Dec 2, 2011
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  28. Mrs. Albert

    Mrs. Albert demented estrogen monster

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    grasshoppers and june bugs will jump/fly directly on yo face, tho! :soma:
     
    Mrs. Albert, Dec 2, 2011
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  29. garamet

    garamet "The whole world is watching."

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    I'd trade a roomful of crickets for even one of these fuckers:

    [yt=Cicada]ai8feMOIJ24&feature=related[/yt]
     
    garamet, Dec 2, 2011
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  30. Man Afraid of his Shoes

    Man Afraid of his Shoes كافر

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    As kids, we used to tie a length of thread around June Bug legs and "walk" them down the street as they tried to fly off. :yes:

    Probably against the law now. :marathon:
     
    Man Afraid of his Shoes, Dec 2, 2011
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