My partner, Kim was getting in to her car this morning and saw a magnificent animal. It was a Titan stick insect [Acrophylla titan]. This is Australia's largest insect, growing to 26 cm.

This one was at least that big. They usually feed on Eucalypts and Cypress pines, but this one was feeding on a Mitsubishi Lancer!

They are known as Phasmids, and are completely harmless and rely on camouflage to escape from predators. They are rarely seen because of their excellent stick like appearance, and the fact that they usually inhabit tall trees. I have seen them in wattles when I have been climbing around them; quite a shock with the 'stick' moves!

Females lay their eggs one at a time and flick them away from her so they land in the leaf litter.Stick insect eggs look a lot like seeds. They have a little hatch for the nymphs to open when they hatch. This is called an operculum. Ants move the eggs around, but do not eat the egg. They are interested in the operculum only. So the ant benefits as does the stick insect. There are many examples of this symbiotic relationship in nature. Wattles do the same thing. They have an appendage to their seed called an elaisome, that the ants love. They collect the seeds and bring them down into their nests, and allowing the seed to germinate. I regularly see ants queued up at the entrance to their nests, each with a wattle seed in tow.

Another Phasmid common to the Noosa Biosphere is the Goliath stick insect [Eurycnema goliath] which is green in colour and not quite as big as Titan. Stick insects have become popular as pets... but I like to see them in the wild. Keep your eyes open, particularly after a storm and you may have the privilege of seeing one of these magnificent creatures.