Scientist discovers walking sausage
A giant stick insect that looks like a "walking sausage" has been found on a remote island off Australia.
Scientists had thought the Drycocelus Australis, which evolved before the dinosaurs, had been extinct for 80 years.
Now boffins have declared it to be the world's rarest insect, with only ten left in existence.
The insect was only found on Lord Howe Island off Australia's eastern seaboard, but was wiped out in the 1920s by rats that arrived aboard a supply ship.
However, scientists found a new colony on Balls Pyramid, a volcanic rock jutting out of the sea 14 miles from Lord Howe Island.
Wildlife service scientist Nicholas Carlile, who made the discovery with ranger Dean Hiscox said: "I was lost for words, apart from the odd expletive. We couldn't jump for joy for fear of falling off the 60 degree slope."
