I found this great stick insect on the first night of our desert trip last week. I was using the flashlight to try to look out for spiders on the wall, and I found her ambling between the wall and a little stand that held golf balls for putting. She was about 3 inches, not including her outstretched front legs.

As with the mantid, I put her in a jar to save for the next day so I could take her picture.


Face


If this doesn't look like a stick, nothing does!


After taking the pictures, I released her here in this plant. This was about 8 or 10 feet from where I found her, and the woody stems had the same exact coloration as her body. She also left me with a little souvenir. A single egg, which I brought home. I still need to learn what kind of stick insect she was, and when I might expect the egg to hatch.