Sorry I don't have any pics as yet. However there are some good pics at this site:
http://www.kcc.org.nz/animals/weta/treeweta.asp
Some people are scared of them, some find them ugly and I guess they are a bit. But they have character and really, if you don't try to cuddle them, they don't hurt you. They can get a little agressive if you try to pick them up.
There are lots of different varieties, Tree weta, ground weta, giant weta and cave weta are a few. The most common one we find around here is the tree weta.
They like dark places and before putting on our gumboots it always pays to shake them first in case a weta has taken up residence.
Some weta facts:
- The weta is only found in New Zealand.
- Weta are large by insect standards but some of the giant weta are ENORMOUS and are amongst the heaviest insects in the world
- The weta is sometimes known as the dinosaur of the insect world
- The weta is more primitive than the tuatara
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The weta has changed very little in the past 100 million years.
http://tvnz.co.nz/view/video_popup_flash_skin/1382032
to view a fascinating cave weta video. My brother had an old gold mine on his property and there were lots of cave wetas in there. I have to admit they are a little scary, I don't like the way they can jump on you if you disturb them.
4 comments:
I saw a few of the pics from yesterday's post, and these bugs look FORMIDABLE... Yep, I'd be checking my wellies with a FLASHLIGHT every single time I needed to put them on, if there was a risk of a Weta inside...
Their bodies are a bit like a grasshopper or a cricket, although much larger. Are they hardy, and difficult to evict, or do they ever really become a pesky problem?
Yes the weta has a body similar to a cricket but it has a very hard exoskeleton. If you accidently stand on one there is a very loud crunch (eek).
They are very hardy and will cling to things when you try to shake them off. But they never ever become a problem or pest.
They are not prolific breeders and are very shy creatures preferring to hide away in the woodpile.
In fact I have an old pile of rotting wood in a corner that needs to be cleaned up and I just know there will be some there. I may be able to get a photo, will have the camera ready. Sometimes the cats catch one but they cant eat them, too boney and too many spikes.
I removed the pics I initially posted - I had copied them was worried about copyright.
I was once on the Prairies visiting my great aunt on her farm during a grasshopper plague... I remember the sound of their bodies crunching under my feet as I walked. Yuuurrrkkkk!! There were zillions of them-- it was truly Biblical...
I like the sound of your Weta, actually, now that I know they are reclusive types and not pests... Hopefully you'll be able to capture a non-camera-shy one with your camera one day!
xo CGF
Candy - what an amazing experience, I have seen a plague of grasshoppers on TV and it looks so scary.
Yes you would like Wetas, they have character even though they are not strictly beautiful to look at! But then some people are like that too.
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