My wife spotted this pointy katydid the other day.
It has a wonderful name: the sword-bearing conehead, Neoconocephalus ensiger. Sometimes the taxonomists get it right.
Pharyngula
Evolution, development, and random biological ejaculations from a godless liberal
I’ve met a few Neoconocephaloids in my day. They aren’t as pretty as this little guy.
It looks like a smaller version of those Japanese goofy 1960s angular kaiju monsters.
OT
MSNBC:
“BREAKING: ABC announces Jimmy Kimmel will return to TV tomorrow”
.https://youtube.com/watch?v=2Y3pNMV5acU
You see? If you push back, you win!
🙂🍾🎇🎉
I agree with PZ, it is an appropriate name, even if it sounds like a character from Saturday Night Live.
birgerjohansson@3
ABC is not a hero here. They should be totally ashamed of their caving to a bully in the first place. They are weak and have totally lost whatever integrity and authority they may have once had.
I like to go out at night with a light and follow their sound and once I find one, I reach for them very slowly and once my hand is close enough I grab the back end of their wings and then grab on to the thorax with the other hand. I handle them gently and release them. I have to be careful and fast because their mandibles can deliver a painful pinch and they are eager to bite.
Well, to be fair: Taxonomists are not normally responsible for vernacular names, but in this case, it’s a literal translation of the scientific name, apart from the “Neo-” part. So “New sword-bearing conehead” 😄 Well, done, taxonomists!
I see Nature’s answer to the Tesla Cybertruck. Very similar lines.
My search for Neoconocephalus produced:
Uh, when did taxonomists start sorting things into “tribes”? I missed another memo, dammit!
(Couldn’t find any paleoconocephalus – surely just as well.)
Wikipedia article is a stub. Aww. I did find a sound file. They sound like slightly broken sprinklers.