Insects are a wide variety of insects that come in many shapes and sizes. They range from the tiniest ant to the biggest cockroach. Insects make up more than 50% of all living things on earth. Insects pollinate plants, make food and honey. Insects are used in medicine.
But which one is the largest, and which ones appear to have been digitally manipulated and can’t be real?
In this blog, we will learn about the top 7 largest insects in the world from longest to heaviest. So dust off your bug repellent and get ready to be (ahem) enthralled.
Phobaeticus kirbyi (Stick Insect)
This stick insect is found in Borneo where the rainforest and swamps are vast. The species has a brown or green colour and has a large head with small eyes. One of the longest insects in the world is a specimen held at London’s Natural History Museum. The length of the insect is 54.6 cm and the legs are fully extended. It was believed for many years to be the world’s longest insect.
Phobaeticus serratipes- Giant Malayan stick insect
Giant Malayan stick insects are mostly found on the Malay Peninsula, but can also be found in Singapore and on Sumatra. This insect is popular among people who have stick insects for pets. One female was found to be 55.5 cm long with her legs wide open, although their body size is usually quite small but this is considered as the largest insects in the world.
Megaphasma denticrus-Giant walking stick insect
The Giant walking stick is not only very long, but it is also very heavy and one of the largest insects in the world. In fact, one individual weighed 65g, about three times the weight of the average mouse! This species is found in the Southern United States where they live in wooded and grassy areas. They are very hard to spot due to their excellent camouflage.
Deinacrida heteracantha-Giant weta
The world’s heaviest insect is the Giant Wētā. It’s a grasshopper that weighs 71g. That’s about the same weight as a healthy gerbil. It’s found in New Zealand where it’s been around for 70 million years, and it’s protected by law because it’s at risk of extinction due to habitat loss. Most of its population lives on smaller islands, where it doesn’t have any mammalian predators.
Goliathus goliatus-Goliath beetle
The larval stage is the heaviest beetle of all insects. Once they become adults, they can only weigh about 50-70g. Scientists believe they may grow to more than 100g in the wild. However, this has not yet been confirmed. Not only is it the heaviest insect, but it is also the strongest. It has a lifting capacity of 850 times the weight of one person.
Megasoma elephas – Rhinoceros elephant beetle
The elephant beetle is also known as the horn beetle because of its horn, which protrudes out of the middle of its head like the trunk of an elephant. Although the beetle is black, it looks yellow due to the presence of many fine hairs on the body. Another large beetle, this one can reach a length of 13.7cm and is found mainly in Central America including Mexico. This beetle weighs 50g to 70g.
Phryganistria chinesis- Undescribed species
The world’s longest stick insect is the undescribed and longest insect species. A wild specimen of this new insect species measured 62.4 cm in length, but a captive bred specimen of this species has since reached 64 cm in length. Now all that’s left to decide is the insect’s name. The insect was first discovered in 2014 by Zhao Li, a Chinese researcher, in the city of Liuzhou in Guangxi province, China. Since then, Zhao Li has bred more examples of this insect in captivity. The length of this insect is as long as an adult human arm, and it can live up to one year.
