Knowra Giant wētā Giant wētā Giant wētā are large, flightless crickets in the genus Deinacrida, endemic to New Zealand. They include some of the heaviest insects and occupy habitats from forests to alpine grasslands.
Wētā : Wētā are diverse New Zealand insects in the cricket and king cricket superfamily group Ensifera. Giant wētā are one of New Zealand’s several distinct wētā lineages.
Little Barrier giant wētā : The Little Barrier giant wētā, Deinacrida heteracantha, is a large species native to Hauturu / Little Barrier Island. Its protected island population is a prominent example of giant-wētā conservation.
Mountain stone wētā : The mountain stone wētā, Deinacrida connectens, is an alpine giant wētā found in New Zealand’s South Island. It demonstrates that giant wētā can thrive above the tree line.
Polynesian rat : The Polynesian rat, Rattus exulans, is a small rodent introduced across many Pacific islands, including New Zealand. Introduced rats prey on giant wētā and contributed to their disappearance from many mainland areas.
Deinacrida : Deinacrida is a genus of large, flightless wētā endemic to New Zealand. This genus is the taxonomic group meant by giant wētā.
Mahoenui giant wētā : The Mahoenui giant wētā, Deinacrida mahoenui, is a threatened species surviving in a patch of gorse in the North Island. Its unusual refuge shows how a non-native plant can shelter a threatened species.
Tusked wētā : Tusked wētā are New Zealand crickets in the genus Motuweta, whose males have prominent tusk-like mandibles. Their name and large size invite comparison, but they are not giant wētā.
Ship rat : The ship rat, Rattus rattus, is an invasive rodent found in New Zealand and other regions worldwide. Predation by ship rats threatens giant wētā populations outside predator-free refuges.
Ensifera : Ensifera is a suborder of orthopteran insects that includes crickets, katydids, and wētā. Giant wētā belong to this long-antennaed branch of Orthoptera.
Tree wētā : Tree wētā are New Zealand crickets in the genus Hemideina, commonly living in tree cavities. Unlike giant wētā, tree wētā are smaller and often shelter in galleries in wood.
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