While walkingsticks feed on plants, the damage is usually minimal unless they become particularly abundant. On vegetation, their slow movement and twig-like appearance make these fragile insects difficult to find. Some will even sway in the breeze. On the wall of the Visitor Center, it is much harder for them to just "blend in". The insect shown above has only 5 legs - one of the middle legs is missing. In the United States, only one Florida species develops wings in the adult stage.
female walkingstick (probably the same species as the male above)
2003 September 27 along the Pinery Trail
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