Coconut grasshopper

So, I was locking up the house the other day when I looked over my shoulder and jumped so high my head nearly hit the roof. What was checking me out? A coconut grasshopper. It was ginormous!

I actually didn't know what it was, but by the power of google I quickly learned that New Caledonia's grasshopper is one of the biggest in the world and, unfortunately, threatened with extinction.

Despite it's fearsome appearance, it gets its name from the fact that it eats the leaves on coconut palms and it blends in perfectly. It can reach up to 20cm long. It's not something you'd like to find snuggled up next to you in bed at night...

We let him be and he disappeared overnight. No doubt he's feasting on one of the nearby coconut palms!