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Unidentified Insect
Posted: Sun Dec 17, 2023 4:22 am
by Loulou
I saw Yesterday an insect, I never saw before. I described it to the people and nobody ever saw it. That’s why I ask you as long nsects expert to help me. Thanks a lot
Description:
Place Kenya Southcoast Funzi Keys 30 kilometer from the Tanzanian Border. Near the sea fresh cutted gras. I
Length 10centimeters, legs 6centimeter long, but very fine in neongreen. Triangular wings in bright orange with a neongreen line, like frame around the orange. It looked little bit like a mantis. It flight in a jumpy way out of the gres to the next landing in the gras after circa 3-4 meters. When it flight you could see the orange triangle on the wings very well.
Does anybody know that Insect?
Re: Unidentified Insect
Posted: Sun Dec 17, 2023 3:05 pm
by livingplanet3
Loulou wrote: ↑Sun Dec 17, 2023 4:22 am
I saw Yesterday an insect, I never saw before. I described it to the people and nobody ever saw it. That’s why I ask you as long nsects expert to help me. Thanks a lot
Description:
Place Kenya Southcoast Funzi Keys 30 kilometer from the Tanzanian Border. Near the sea fresh cutted gras. I
Length 10centimeters, legs 6centimeter long, but very fine in neongreen. Triangular wings in bright orange with a neongreen line, like frame around the orange. It looked little bit like a mantis. It flight in a jumpy way out of the gres to the next landing in the gras after circa 3-4 meters. When it flight you could see the orange triangle on the wings very well.
Does anybody know that Insect?
Perhaps a kind of katydid (bush cricket)? Did it look something like this? -
Re: Unidentified Insect
Posted: Sun Dec 17, 2023 5:46 pm
by Loulou
Thanks a lot livingplanet3 for your suggestion. The green is right, but the orange in a triangle pattern at the wing is missing.
Re: Unidentified Insect
Posted: Sun Dec 17, 2023 6:53 pm
by adamcotton
Perhaps it's a species of winged stick insect? Sorry, I have no idea about the potential species in Kenya.
Adam.
Re: Unidentified Insect
Posted: Sun Dec 17, 2023 9:11 pm
by Panacanthus
Possibly a species of Phymateus grasshopper. Did you see orange only when it was in flight? With a Phymateus grasshopper, you would see no orange on the wings until it was either flying, or lifting its wings in preparation to fly. It is also possible it may lift its wings if threatened. Regardless, color is only visible when wings are lifted, as the color is on the hind wings which are folded underneath green forewings during rest. Phymateus grasshoppers can have bright red, orange or multicolored hind wings. Their overall body color can be green.
Could possibly have been Phymateus viridipes, the “green milkweed locust”, but I am not certain of their exact range.
- IMG_2467.jpeg (91.11 KiB) Viewed 1939 times
- IMG_2468.jpeg (260.45 KiB) Viewed 1939 times
- IMG_2469.jpeg (25.09 KiB) Viewed 1939 times
Re: Unidentified Insect
Posted: Mon Dec 18, 2023 4:22 pm
by Loulou
Dear Panancanthus
Wow what a beautiful Insect, the phymatheus grasshopper, Nature in the Insectworld is showing amazing forms and colours. It is near to what I saw, but the orange was different and the pattern had a triangle form with a frame of green around. Can it be that the milkweed grasshopper can have digmfferent patterns and forms of pattern? Because I could only seebthe colour when it was flying.
Re: Unidentified Insect
Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2023 4:21 pm
by Panacanthus
Loulou wrote: ↑Mon Dec 18, 2023 4:22 pm
Dear Panancanthus
Wow what a beautiful Insect, the phymatheus grasshopper, Nature in the Insectworld is showing amazing forms and colours. It is near to what I saw, but the orange was different and the pattern had a triangle form with a frame of green around. Can it be that the milkweed grasshopper can have digmfferent patterns and forms of pattern? Because I could only seebthe colour when it was flying.
Their patterns vary somewhat (among different species of Phymateus), and some are definitely orange, but the exact pattern you describe seems unlikely. There are plenty of other grasshoppers and insects which can also be very colorful. Hopefully one day you can get a photo to show us!