Giant butterfly found at school in Australia | Science

Not all insects fit in the palm of your hand. At a school in Queensland, Australia, a giant 25-centimeter butterfly was found by workers doing construction work at the institution, located next to a rainforest. “It’s a surprising find,” said school principal Meagan Steward.

The images of the specimen have become more than a curiosity. Experts from the Queensland Museum put on the gloves and analyzed the bug. Chris Lambkin, curator of entomology, explained that giant moths, known to the scientific world as Endoxyla cineraThey can be found in the area where the school is located as far as New South Wales, although they are rarely seen by humans – despite their size. The reason is that their life cycle is very short: “They emerge, mate, lay eggs and die,” said Christine Lambkin, head of the museum’s entomology department.

The normal thing is to find these insects when they are only 2.5 centimeters tall and as skinny as a pencil, hence the success of the female and giant butterfly that has been found. Experts explained that adult butterflies, which can carry up to 20,000 eggs in their wombs, lack functional organs to feed themselves and get their energy from the fat stores they have accumulated in the larval stage. According to the Queensland Museum, there are at least 60 species of wood butterflies in Australia, the same species they found.

Experts consulted by the New York Times They say that, unbelievable as it is to see a giant insect, the wood moth is not the biggest. According to Floyd W. Shockley, an entomologist at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, consulted by the American newspaper, the white witch butterfly, which is found in South America, reaches up to 30 centimeters.

The Australian butterfly was not only mentioned by experts, it was also a source of inspiration for children at the school where they found it. After showing them a photo, they were asked to write down what a moth invasion would look like. “The students wrote some very creative and imaginative texts, like the one about Mrs. Wilson being eaten by the giant woodland butterfly,” said Steward, the principal of the school.

The female butterfly found at school was sent back to the forest after the mandatory photoshoot. Fortunately, for her, no one wanted to try it, despite the fact that experts like the entomologist at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington say they can be eaten raw or cooked. “It was said that its flavor was similar to that of almonds,” he assured the Time.