Many representatives of the fauna possess unique masking abilities but stick insects are among the masters of disguise within the animal world. During a field trip in Guangxi, China Mr. Ho Wai-chun George from the Hong Kong Entomological Society discovers a new species from this enigmatic insect group, which he describes in a recent research paper published in the open access journal Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift.
Like the name suggests the new stick insect Sinophasma damingshanensis is distinguished by peculiarly elongated body and green-brownish coloration, which bear an astonishing resemblance to a plant stem. This natural camouflage can make stick insects extremely difficult to spot, and to make it even harder for the observer many also show rocking behavior, where they move from side to side to resemble plant movements in the wind.
The new species was discovered hiding in the thick evergreen forests of Damingshan, located at the south-central Guangxi, China during a collecting trip. To make the work of scientists harder this insects had to be collected at night when it is active. Luckily with the help of a torch used to spot them on the leaves of plants a number of specimens were collected, which later turned out to belong to a new species.
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