A huge stick insect has been discovered in Australia. Here’s why that’s important | Gwen Pearson

Yes, they can be hard to spot - but this find highlights how little we know about creatures crucial to our ecosystem

• Gwen Pearson is adjunct professor at Michigan State University Department of Entomology

Scientists recently announced they had found an enormous new stick insect in Australia. At 41cm in length and weighing 44g, the main question I heard was: Why didn't scientists notice something that big before now?"

The short answer is: it's a stick. Stick insects spent over 100m years perfecting their cosplay as leaves, branches and moss. They are diabolically difficult to spot, even with fairly acute human vision. If you disturb a stick insect, its usual response is to fall to the ground and lie still. So now you are looking for a stick lying on the ground ... among all the other sticks.

Gwen Pearson is adjunct faculty at Michigan State University Department of Entomology. She received the Entomological Foundation Medal of Honor for her work in education and science communication