What's this?

[skyhunter]

Is this what I think it is?

[wdswtr]

What do you think it is cause I have no idea? Alien invasion? Or is that a mountain lion lol.

[cynthiafu]

the white thing looks like one of those large female misquitoes

[fasteddie]

Whatever it is ...... I hope it came in peace !

[HHC1]

Its a European Crane Fly....commonly mistaked for a large, female mesquito.

[DIAMOND D]

Mountain Lion hands down! Elongated tail, plus look at its gait, ain't no way its a European fly or whatever, sure that is what the DEC wants us to believe.... I know a guy who took a picture of one of these and that's exactly what the DEC told him. Maybe the DEC planted European flies here to discredit all our trail cam photos of Mt. Lions. 

[wdswtr]

I looked up pictures of european crane fly and it looks like to me that thing is too white and too big.  An adult is only 1 1/2 inches and is darker in color.  Could be the camera view but it doesnt look like one to me.

[YoungBucksTasteBetter]

It's an animal species so rare the trophy hunting community hasn't yet found a bunch of reasons to tell us we can't harvest it...a deer-less whitetailed antler.

From the spread on the 2 side beams, and the slight downward tilt of the main body, I'd say this is a 3.5 year old.

[G-Man]

love when the flash reflects back giving great what is it pictures !! lol

[skyhunter]

What do you think it is cause I have no idea? Alien invasion? Or is that a mountain lion lol.

I was thinking a menber of the "walking stick" family, but those sticks are put together different.

A common answer is the large female mosquito or cousin of which I have some questions about:

1st) would a bug have the  presence to trigger this trailcam? I don't recall insects ever triggering my  cams before.

2nd) If the insect did actually have the mass to trigger the  camera then it would have to be rather large, airborne in flight, and very close  to the fresnel sensor; and if that is the case then why do you not see the  action of the wings or the reflection off of the wings that the cameras flash  surely should have produced?

I don't see any visual evidence in the picture of  the beating wings being highly visible like they should be. I have hummingbird pics wheer the wings are blurred and highly visible. In this case I would also have  expected these buzzing wings to have a blurred and glowing appearence especially at close range,  but here I don't see clear evidence of this even though an acceptable focus is present on the subject .

[5.9cummins]

Its a European Crane Fly....commonly mistaked for a large, female mesquito.

Crane fly but i doubt European (abdomen is too small). Photo isnt good enough to get species.

[wdswtr]

I think the legs are too skinny for a crane fly compared to the body size.  This pic isnt clear but it looks similar to the stick bug.

[5.9cummins]

http://www.google.com/search?q=crane+fly&hl=en&biw=1280&bih=880&prmd=ivns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=Ks0iTqDdLaT40gGHo_28Aw&sqi=2&ved=0CE0QsAQ

Google image search for crane fly.

A "stick bug" - walking stick cant fly. At least not to my knowledge - many phasmids are wingless and in species that do have wings they are extremely small.

Crane flys legs are extremely skinny. They break off and keep moving (decoy) if  bird or other predator trys to catch them.

[Larry]

I just watched Battle Los Angles and it looks like one of the aliens only in miniature I think they are trying to seek in under the radar. LOL

[wdswtr]

http://www.google.com/search?q=crane+fly&hl=en&biw=1280&bih=880&prmd=ivns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=Ks0iTqDdLaT40gGHo_28Aw&sqi=2&ved=0CE0QsAQ

Google image search for crane fly.

A "stick bug" - walking stick cant fly. At least not to my knowledge - many phasmids are wingless and in species that do have wings they are extremely small.

Crane flys legs are extremely skinny. They break off and keep moving (decoy) if  bird or other predator trys to catch them.

I did google it and like I said it doesnt look anything like a cranefly to me.  It also doesnt look like it is flying.  Never seen any insect flying with its legs sticking out all over the place like they are in his trail cam pic..  The legs in the picture are to think for a cranefly in my opinion a well.  I ty my own flies for fly fishing and study insect all the time to recreate them and I will stick with the stickbug lol.  You know we need to get the deer season under way when we are trying to figure out what bug is in that picture lol. 

[Geno C]

big skeeter

[skyhunter]

.  It also doesnt look like it is flying.  Never seen any insect flying with its legs sticking out all over the place like they are in his trail cam pic..  The legs in the picture are to think for a cranefly in my opinion a well.  I ty my own flies for fly fishing and study insect all the time to recreate them and I will stick with the stickbug lol.  You know we need to get the deer season under way when we are trying to figure out what bug is in that picture lol.

I would agree that this animal is not in flight. The flash went off in this picture and if the insect is flying then where are the buzzing wings with light reflecting off of them. I don't see that or any hint of blurryness that fast moving wings surely should have created when the flash hits them.

I say it's on the ground but I can't quite see a "walking stick either from the refernce pictures I have looked up, but that could be due to the angle in my pic being quite different than the others I saw.

[ELMER J. FUDD]

Duh! it's obviously a mountain lion... :