If you have been over on the Facebook page Spotted Torquay this morning, 30th June, you may have seen this insect getting some attention.
With someone asking what it was.
Well, it’s a stick insect! We know that much but it looks like this little fella could be an escapee!
It unfortunately appears as though it’s bid for freedom may cost it’s life as apparently it won’t be able to survive the climate in Torquay.
Mark Burdis passed on this message from an enthusiast:
“Although the naturalised Prickly Stick-insect Acanthoxyla geisovii is found throughout the Torbay region, including Torquay, I am fairly confident your image shows a male Thorny Devil, or Giant Spiny Stick-insect Eurycantha calcarata.
“This species is commonly kept in cultivation by enthusiasts and I suspect your one has escaped from a local collector. Being a sub-tropical species it cannot survive outdoors in the UK,”
Mystery solved.
So, if you have lost a stick insect. It’s currently on a wall in Torquay and become a bit of a star on social media.
