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Today I encountered a walking stick insect outside the motel we stayed at in southern Missouri. I attempted to capture it in a bottle. The insect had a body about 5 inches long with long legs. The neck of the bottle was not big enough and the insect was able to elude capture. Another reason was that the insect curled its tail like a scorpian with what appeared to be a stinger at the tip. I decided I did not want to find out whether this was a real stinger, so I quit the attempt. I have read some web sites which indicate that these are sometimes kept as pets. I would not want to have a pet if it could sting and in so doing inflict a venom which caused injury. Does anyone know about whether this insect does have a stinger?

Answer:

A lot of stick insects curl up their tails when they feel threatened, making them resemble a scorpion or appear to be a lot more dangerous than they are. Stick insects do not have stingers or venom. Some species have sharp and painful spines on their legs and bodies, but they do not possess a stinger.

The Giant Prickly (Extatosoma tiaratum) stick insect is well known for its scorpion-like stance. The females are very bulky and broad and the end of the tail can look sharp, but is in fact harmless. Because some species will resemble a scorpion, it has a better chance of being left alone by a predator.

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15y ago

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