New Zealand Man Finds Very Special (Insect) Lady; Lets Her Go

I think it’s relatively safe to say that many of the folks around here are familiar with the word “weta,” meaning the New Zealand effects company that brought the world of The Lord of the Rings, Narnia, and District 9 and  to life on the big screen for millions of people. But the “weta” that Weta is named after is actually large endangered beetle indigenous to the islands. Former park ranger Mark Moffet has recently discovered the biggest specimen ever recorded.

Below this jump, you will find a picture of her eating a full size carrot. If you don’t want to look at it, just enjoy these baby elephants hugging, and then move on. Otherwise click on, and enjoy the elephants afterward.

I mean.. crickey!

Picture via The Sun.

See, this is why I would never actually survive in World of Warcraft or The Hobbit. Bugs as big as small puppies.

Says Moffet:

She enjoyed the carrot so much she seemed to ignore the fact she was resting on our hands and carried on munching away. She would have finished the carrot very quickly, but this is an extremely endangered species and we didn’t want to risk indigestion. After she had chewed a little I took this picture and we put her right back where we found her.

See, I read that paragraph and think, “well, that’s not so scary, she seems kind of docile, even…” and then my eyes drift back up to that picture and it’s just “Nope, nope, nope, nope.” I’m going to go look a the elephants now, excuse me.

(The Sun via The Daily What. Elephants from The Cutest of the Cute.)