The scientific name for the dobsonfly is Corydalus cornutus.
4 inches long
No, we just caught one in my front yard. It is not extinct.
dobsonfly live near bodies of water for that most part, they spend most of their lives in the larval states as water creatures, when they grow up they live for only seven days or so and primarily live near the body of water from which they were born.
If it's the same thing we called a "helgermite" back when I lived in WV, it's actually called a Dobsonfly. They are a variety of insects native to the Americas, Asia and Africa.
Dobsonflies eat small bugs and some plants
I found a few good pictures and some information at the following site. http://insects.tamu.edu/fieldguide/bimg121.html
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producer it is a plant :)
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