sciencefriday:

Behold, the Gargantuan Stick Insect!

Seeing this giant Australian stick insect species, Ctenomorpha gargantua, in the wild would be a little like hitting the jackpot.

A few males have been spotted here and there, but only three of the much-larger females—like the one pictured here—have ever been seen, according to Maik Fiedel, coordinator of live exhibits at the Museum Victoria’s Melbourne Museum.

Fiedel came across the third female two years ago. He was on an annual collection trip in Cairns with colleagues from the museum when he spotted the 50-centimeter-long insect hanging upside-down from a bush (it had probably fallen from the tree canopy). Upon realizing what it was, “I started screaming,” he says. The team collected it, and the museum dubbed it “Lady Gaga-ntuan,” a play on the American pop star and the insect’s large size.

It got even more exciting once it started to lay eggs.