Monday, Nov. 03, 2008
World's longest insect
Things to consider when planning a trip to Borneo: beautiful beaches, amazing culture, and big-time bugs. In October, British scientists identified the Phobaeticus chani as the longest insect in the world. The new species of stick-insect — nicknamed "Chan's megastick" after the Malaysian amateur naturalist, Datuk Chan Chew Lun, who donated it to London's Natural History Museum — measures 22 inches long with its legs fully extended. Its body spans 14 of those inches. And what can these long fellows do? Paul Brock, a scientific associate of the British museum told the Associated Press, "Their main defense is basically hanging around, looking like a twig."