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June 09, 2008
Do you recognise this face?
Posted by neil, at 06:15 PM

On this Queen's Birthday Public Holiday, I thought that I would issue a challenge to our Politics & Environment Weblog community:
To whom or what does this face belong?
I can tell you that it is not a member of Australia's legislature. Neither is it employed in Australia's public service. It is definitely Australian, but it is not a contributor to our discussion on this blog, so it would be vexatious to suggest any of our local identities.
I'll wait to see what our readership comes up with, before revealing the identity.
Posted by neil at June 9, 2008 06:15 PM
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Comments
It's an insect, right.
Now I think you should provide another clue - please.
Posted by: Jennifer at June 9, 2008 06:59 PM
I'm going with snail. Perhaps some type of sea snail. Those things down at the bottom are stalks and the ridge at the top is a shell.
The multifaceted mirror deals are it'd hearing aids.
It's an elderly sea snail.
Posted by: James Mayeau at June 9, 2008 07:06 PM
Before I do, Jen, why do you think it is an insect?
Posted by: Neil Hewett at June 9, 2008 07:16 PM
I see he/she/it is wired for sound, so I guess it ends in "pod"
Posted by: rog at June 9, 2008 07:19 PM
No insect!
Most insects need and have huge eyes.
Posted by: Marcus at June 9, 2008 07:34 PM
Don't snails have eyes at the end of stalks?
I go for insect because of the two polygonally aggregated bubbles on either side of the structure.
Posted by: Louis Hissink at June 9, 2008 07:35 PM
Hi Neil,
It's an insect because we have a head with antennae, compound eyes and ocelli.
Given the ocelli are dorsal, we could have a species of Hymenoptera, Diptera, Odonata or Orthopera? I suspect Orthopera (grasshoper).
Posted by: Jennifer at June 9, 2008 07:36 PM
That should be Orthoptera with a second 't'.
Posted by: Jennifer at June 9, 2008 07:38 PM
They are insect eyes I should have added, thereby making the structure a head, and from the protrusions I suspect it might be a moth and venture it might be a Bogong moth? But since it's probably QLD rainforest insect, hardly a Bogong.
So its a moth of indeterminate identification.
Posted by: Louis Hissink at June 9, 2008 07:38 PM
Crikey, Latin at 10 paces!
Posted by: Louis Hissink at June 9, 2008 07:40 PM
Louis, from memory, moths/Lepidoptera have lateral not dorsal ocelli. so not a moth.
I will get my insect morphology book out of the garage tomorrow and check.
Posted by: Jennifer at June 9, 2008 07:42 PM
Also the mouthparts are wrong for Lepidoptera.
Posted by: Jennifer at June 9, 2008 07:46 PM
Jennifer,
Slaving in the galley, it occurred to me that it isn't a moth, but the head looks like it belongs to a praying, or is it preying, mantis. It's the structure above it's head that puzzles.
Posted by: Louis Hissink at June 9, 2008 08:04 PM
ET with heat seeking goggles, hiding in a discarded shell?
Posted by: Marcus at June 9, 2008 08:21 PM
Some additional hints:
I rotated the original photograph 168 degrees clockwise and cropped it to about 30% of its original image size.
It was feeding on the sap of a lychee tree, when I photographed it.
Posted by: Neil Hewett at June 9, 2008 08:36 PM
Well, eyes are still in the right place but one must invert it.
Looks like a fruit bat, but the eyes contradict that since they are not mammalian.
Hmm, novel phenomena for me, but it remains an insect.
Posted by: Louis Hissink at June 9, 2008 09:02 PM
The eyes have it, you know, putting on his best Peter Seller's character of the Goon Show.
Posted by: Louis Hissink at June 9, 2008 09:05 PM
Reckon it'a s stick/leaf insect of some kind. Thrown by the compound eyes. Going through phasmid pics...
Is Neil being cryptic and the name is something to do with the queen?
Posted by: Arnost at June 9, 2008 09:10 PM
Sorry Arnost,
Neither a phasmid nor anytyhing to do with HRR.
Posted by: Neil Hewett at June 9, 2008 09:15 PM
mantis shrimp of some kind? getting warmer?
Posted by: Arnost at June 9, 2008 09:30 PM
Well, being Australian rules out Britney Speers so it must be a dragonfly.
Posted by: rog at June 9, 2008 09:44 PM
Neil,
Admit defeat, have no idea.
Posted by: Louis Hissink at June 9, 2008 09:50 PM
Order Hemiptera (well done Jen); Family (I think) is Pentatomidae
Posted by: Neil Hewett at June 9, 2008 09:54 PM
Neil
Based on the above comments, how did Jennifer guess it?
I see nothing to support your last comment.
Posted by: Louis Hissink at June 9, 2008 10:03 PM
Neil, Hemiptera have sucking mouthparts. this creatures doesn't look like it has sucking mouthparts?
Posted by: Jennifer at June 9, 2008 10:05 PM
That stinks and it buggs me no end! :)
Should do stuff like this more often - was just getting warmed up!
Posted by: Arnost at June 9, 2008 10:09 PM
so the sucking mouthparts are hidden behind those non-functional 'mandible'.
yes, it was fun. thanks Neil.
Posted by: Jennifer at June 9, 2008 10:37 PM
and for those who haven't 'refreshed', this is the complete creature: http://www.jennifermarohasy.com/blog/archives/003152.html
Posted by: Jennifer at June 9, 2008 10:40 PM
Cha --- I was so close.
Posted by: James Mayeau at June 10, 2008 12:56 AM