A rare giant insect found at a school in Queensland has stunned social media

A giant moth has stunned social media users after being found at a school in Queensland.

“Monster” insect was found by tradies during the construction of a building at Mount Cotton State School in the south of Brisbane.

School principal Megan Steward said the find was “amazing.”

He told ABC Radio that the school was located near a rain forest and that the school’s students and staff were not surprised by the frequent sightings of animals on campus.

However, a giant insect has not been seen before.

Steward added the moth by measuring the size of “two fists” and was placed back in the rainforest after some photos were snapped.

After the search, a class of year 4 and 5 students were shown a picture of the moth and used it as an incentive for creative writing.

Steward said that “After looking at the pictures, the class was fascinated by what might happen and they decided on a giant moth invasion.”

The students wrote some very creative and imaginative pieces of writing, including (their teacher) Mrs. Wilson being eaten by a giant insect.” This sounds so funny, isn’t it?

The pictures taken by the moth were shared on the school’s Facebook page, attracting hundreds of comments from stunned users.

“Love it! However, never leave the window open,” said one person.

“If any of these come to me, I will really end my existence. Good, God,” wrote another person.

“Sweet mercy. It’s the size of an eggplant,” said another.

Another person added to the moth “this is what the nightmares are made of”

Dr. Christine Lambkin, head of entomology at the Queensland Museum, said she recognized the instantaneous insect as a giant wooden moth or Endoxyla Cinera.

“(They) are rarely seen but not as rare as this,” said Lambkin.

Lambkin added that the wingspan of these insects is up to 25 cm and the females can weigh up to 30g, but the male giant insects are about half the size.

The species is commonly found from North Queensland to southern New South Wales and spends most of its life inside trees.