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Leaf Insect — printable fact sheet
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Leaf Insect
Phyllium philippinicum
Leaf insects (family Phylliidae) of South and Southeast Asia are the most complete plant mimics among animals: the body is flattened into a leaf blade with a false midrib and lateral veins, the legs bear flanges that look like smaller leaflets, and the edges of the body carry ir…
Did you know?
- Despite their leaf-like appearance, leaf insects can sometimes change their shade of green or brown depending on their environment and age.
- A leaf insect's eggs are so seed-like that they can be identified to species from the egg alone, and the shells have been used as a taxonomic character for decades. Females are large and flightless; males, where they exist, are slim, winged, and fly at night to find them - the two sexes barely look like the same animal. Fossils show leaf insects were already using this mimicry around 47 million years ago, and a preserved specimen from the Messel pit in Germany is nearly indistinguishable from the modern form.
What I learned
Draw the leaf insect
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