Extatosoma tiaratum
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Extatosoma tiaratum, commonly known as the spiny leaf insect, the Australian giant prickly stick insect, Macleay's spectre, or the Australian walking stick, is a large species of Australian stick insect. E. tiaratum is endemic to rainforests in Australia, with most of its range in eastern New South Wales and eastern Queensland, but it is also found in eastern Victoria (one old record) and South Australia (possibly introduced). The closely related and similar E. popa is from New Guinea.
Female adult E. tiaratum are covered with thornlike spikes for defense and camouflage. Their long, rounded bodies grow to about 20 cm (8 in) long. The females are further described as "heavy-bodied, brachypterous and having numerous spines and integumental expansions on the face and legs, including a tuft of spines on the conical occiput of the hypognathous head". As mentioned, the wings of the female are too small for flying, regardless of her being gravid.
Exhibiting the sexual dimorphism of many similar insects (particularly other phasmids as well as mantises), males are small and thinner, growing only about 11 cm (4.5 in) in length and have three ocelli. Males lack the... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Daintree National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Lamington National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Springbrook National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Spiny Leaf Insect sighting in Blue Mountains National Park on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 554th most-seen of the 789 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February–March and October–November
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Spiny Leaf Insect in Blue Mountains National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April–September and December–January, the lowest months.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Spiny Leaf Insect sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is seen both by day and at night.
4th of 4
Of the 4 parks where we can rate Spiny Leaf Insect sightings, Blue Mountains National Park ranks 4th at under 5%. The best odds are in Daintree National Park (Australia, about 30%), Lamington National Park (Australia, about 10%) and Springbrook National Park (Australia, about 10%).
Same family: Phasmatidae
The closest relatives of the Spiny Leaf Insect that you can see in Blue Mountains National Park (family Phasmatidae) are Margin-Winged Stick Insect (about 20%), Spur Legged Phasmid (about 10%) and Titan Stick Insect (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Spiny Leaf Insect is recorded against all the insects logged in Blue Mountains National Park (7 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
