Talk:Weta

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Having been born and lived in NZ for the first 20 years of my life, I had seen many wetas there and assumed they were only to be found in NZ. Imagine my surprise when I saw one in Western Australia. They cant be too common here - only ever seen the one. 203.49.183.67 20:55, 1 October 2007 (UTC)Merlin


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Weta was the New Zealand Collaboration of the Fortnight from 7 May, to 21 May 2006
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In New Zealand most of us believe that the Weta commonly encountered in gardens can bite where as it thought that cave and other less common varieties of Weta are harmless. Although I didn't witness this personally, many years ago my father was bitten by a weta - it took a tiny chunk out of his finger.

A taxobox would be of great help. I'm not sure I know the group well enough to add it. --Aranae 08:23, Dec 20, 2004 (UTC)

Nowhere is it "previously mentioned" that wetas live in arctic wastelands. Not sure what direction to take that edit in, since I know nothing about wetas or arctic wastelands... just removed the offending bit for now. --Ccreitz 23:03, 8 April 2006 (UTC)

Contents

[edit] Top 20 citations for "weta"

Below are the top 20 weta citations (Scopus), they may be of some use in expanding the article. Onco_p53 19:43, 25 April 2006 (UTC)

Wallis, G.P., Morgan-Richards, M., Trewick, S.A.
Phylogeographical pattern correlates with Pliocene mountain building in the alpine scree weta (Orthoptera, Anostostomatidae)
(2000) Molecular Ecology, 9 (6), Pages 657-666. Cited 36 times.

Leader, J.
Freezing tolerance of the New Zealand alpine weta, Hemideina maori Hutton [Orthoptera; Stenopelmatidae]
(1992) Journal of Thermal Biology, 17 (1), Pages 51-54. Cited 30 times.

King, T.M., Wallis, G.P., Hamilton, S.A., Fraser, J.R.
Identification of a hybrid zone between distinctive colour variants of the alpine weta Hemideina maori (Orthoptera: Stenopelmatidae) on the Rock and Pillar range, southern New Zealand
(1996) Molecular Ecology, 5 (4), Pages 583-587. Cited 22 times.

Ramløv, H.
Microclimate and variations in haemolymph composition in the freezing-tolerant New Zealand alpine weta Hemideina maori Hutton (Orthoptera: Stenopelmatidae)
(1999) Journal of Comparative Physiology - B Biochemical, Systemic, and Environmental Physiology, 169 (3), Pages 224-235. Cited 19 times.

Sinclair, B.J., Worland, M.R., Wharton, D.A.
Ice nucleation and freezing tolerance in New Zealand alpine and lowland weta, Hemideina spp. (Orthoptera; Stenopelmatidae)
(1999) Physiological Entomology, 24 (1), Pages 56-63. Cited 19 times.

Ramløv, H., Wharton, D.A., Wilson, P.W.
Recrystallization in a freezing tolerant antarctic nematode, Panagrolaimus davidi, and an alpine weta, Hemideina maori (Orthoptera; Stenopelmatidae)
(1996) Cryobiology, 33 (6), Pages 607-613. Cited 14 times.

Gwynne, D.T., Jamieson, I.
Sexual selection and sexual dimorphism in a harem-polygynous insect, the alpine weta (Hemideina maori, Orthoptera Stenopelmatidae)
(1998) Ethology Ecology and Evolution, 10 (4), Pages 393-402. Cited 13 times.

Neufeld, D.S., Leader, J.P.
Electrochemical characteristics of ion secretion in Malpighian tubules of the New Zealand Alpine Weta (Hemideina maori)
(1998) Journal of Insect Physiology, 44 (1), Pages 39-48. Cited 13 times.

Trewick, S.A., Morgan-Richards, M.
On the distribution of tree weta in the North Island, New Zealand
(1995) Journal - Royal Society of New Zealand, 25 (4), Pages 485-493. Cited 13 times.

Jamieson, I.G., Forbes, M.R., McKnight, E.B.
Mark-recapture study of mountain stone weta Hemideina maori (Orthoptera: Anostostomatidae) on rock tor 'islands'
(2000) New Zealand Journal of Ecology, 24 (2), Pages 209-214. Cited 12 times.

Morgan-Richards, M.
Intraspecific karyotype variation is not concordant with allozyme variation in the Auckland tree weta of New Zealand, Hemideina thoracica (Orthoptera: Stenopelmatidae)
(1997) Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 60 (4), Pages 423-442. Cited 10 times.

Koning, J.W., Jamieson, I.G.
Variation in size of male weaponry in a harem-defence polygynous insect, the mountain stone weta hemideina maori (orthoptera: Anostostomatidae)
(2001) New Zealand Journal of Zoology, 28 (1), Pages 109-117. Cited 9 times.

Sinclair, B.J., Wharton, D.A.
Avoidance of intracellular freezing by the freezing-tolerant New Zealand alpine weta Hemideina maori (Orthoptera: Stenopelmatidae)
(1997) Journal of Insect Physiology, 43 (7), Pages 621-625. Cited 9 times.

Ball, E.E., Field, L.H.
Structure of the auditory system of the weta Hemideina crassidens (Blanchard, 1851) (Orthoptera, Ensifera, Gryllacridoidea, Stenopelmatidae) 1. Morphology and histology
(1981) Cell and Tissue Research, 217 (2), Pages 321-344. Cited 9 times.

Jamieson, I.G.
The relationship between male head size and harem size in the sexually dimorphic mountain stone weta Hemideina maori
(2002) Ecological Entomology, 27 (1), Pages 41-48. Cited 8 times.

Neufeld, D.S., Leader, J.P.
Freezing survival by isolated Malpighian tubules of the new zealand alpine weta Hemideina maori
(1998) Journal of Experimental Biology, 201 (2), Pages 227-236. Cited 8 times.

Morgan-Richards, M., Gibbs, G.W.
Colour, allozyme and karyotype variation show little concordance in the New Zealand Giant Scree Weta Deinacrida connectens (Orthoptera: Stenopelmatidae)
(1996) Hereditas, 125 (2-3), Pages 265-276. Cited 7 times.

Wilson, P., Ramlov, H.
Hemolymph ice nucleating proteins from the New Zealand alpine weta Hemideina maori (Orthoptera: Stenopelmatidae)
(1995) Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology - B Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 112 (3), Pages 535-542. Cited 7 times.

Robb, T., Forbes, M.R., Jamieson, I.G.
Greater cuticular melanism is not associated with greater immunogenic response in adults of the polymorphic mountain stone weta, Hemideina maori
(2003) Ecological Entomology, 28 (6), Pages 738-746. Cited 6 times.

[edit] Capitalisation of weta

Maybe this is a minor point, but when should we write Weta with a capital W? The conventions described here and here suggest that this might be appropriate for the names of specific species, such as the Poor Knights Giant Weta, but it should not be done for weta in general (or groups of several species such as cave weta). Any thoughts? -- Avenue 12:31, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

Reading Weta (capitalised) screws with my head when I read this. I support changing Weta to weta per above. PageantUpdater 10:01, 8 May 2006 (UTC)
Okay, I have changed Weta to weta (and likewise Cave Weta to cave weta, etc), except where it is part of a species name (i.e. not the name of a group of species). We need to be careful about the correct capitalisation of individual species names as well, but I haven't had time to look them up yet. -- Avenue 11:36, 10 May 2006 (UTC)
The common names of the species should not be capitalised. See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Arthropods#Names and titles. Nurg 10:51, 13 May 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Biting?

Under Weta#Danger it says that weta do not "pose a risk of stinging or biting people", which I interpret as meaning they do not bite, but several sources on the web say that they do bite. If the intent of that sentence is that the bite is not dangerous, then perhaps it should be reworded.-gadfium 02:40, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

My authoritative source at Landcare Research says they they can bite (he has been bitten), especially the common tree weta. Apparently they hold on for a while too. But he has never had a bite from the large tusked weta (just as well considering their jaw size) Onco_p53 05:18, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

[edit] What needs to be done?

What areas are in need of expansion? Could you also mark whether it is scientific or not? While I would like to contribute as part of the NZcollab, I don't really have much to add at the moment. --Midnighttonight 04:03, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

I suggest you get a book out of your local library and start adding detail. Alternatively, google one of the species names, or read Greg H Sherley's Threatened Weta Recovery Plan linked to under "References", which has a lot of background detail and is fairly easy for a non-specialist to read.
Areas I'd like to see expanded:
  • Species. Ground weta are just barely mentioned at present. The paragraphs on Cave and Giant weta could be expanded. Indeed, each of these paragraphs could become a separate article eventually. Weta are pretty diverse.
  • Evolution - expand from the current paragraph which is currently under Distribution. I don't know anything about this, but if anyone has a source it would be worthy of a separate section.
  • Anatomy
  • Life cycle, behaviour and diet. Some of this information should probably be moved out of the "species" section to its own section.
  • Sounds they make, and how they make them
  • A map of distribution of various species
  • Predators and conservation. This would expand and encompass the current "Rarity" section.
I'd say that you could add to any of these areas without having much science background simply by combining several sources and putting the results into your own words.
I'll ask a friend of a friend who's a weta specialist to look over the article for accuracy once the collaboration is over (or Onco p53 may already have mentioned it to him)-gadfium 04:50, 10 May 2006 (UTC)
Just spoke to him (he's in my shared office). He'll give it a look over and write something on conservation. He has a weta colony of endangered species, and grows them up then re-introduces them to the wild. For my part, I'll pour through those references I added and write a bit on cold tolerence. Onco_p53 05:05, 10 May 2006 (UTC)
See, here's my problem. I stopped doing biology with fifth form science (although one of my sisters has an MSc in Entomology (she specialises in moths) and the other in ecology (skinks) (both from VUW). That was 6-7 years ago. I think I'll focus on ensuring accessability (i.e. watching for jargon) and cultural things, rather than the science in it all. I can also look at political arguments surrounding anything (are there any? for instance do they face problems anywhere due to urbanisation? an equivalent to those snails and the happy valley mine?) --Midnighttonight 07:36, 10 May 2006 (UTC)
One relevant political argument that comes to mind is the controversy over eliminating kiore from islands like Hauturu/Little Barrier Island; see for example Treaty clause to rats' rescue, N.Z. in need of Pied Piper to resolve rat dilemma. -- Avenue 12:43, 10 May 2006 (UTC)
I will make a map if no-one else can or has time, I would need the counts though, I have areas already. I just got busy too!! (making maps) I'd love to see a web cam on-line in the weta colony.. maybe I'll make my own, I had that one in the image on my desk for a couple of days before I returned it. It lived in a power pole, it had been pulled out and I paid $40 for it to be left in the drive for firewood. As i chain-sawed it up I came across several wetas, they ended up in the hedge, where others lived. A recording of their sound would be good.moza 15:45, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

[edit] species

According to DoC, there are five species of Weta, not the four we have here. Indeed DoC have a lot of info on them. --Midnighttonight 08:22, 14 May 2006 (UTC)

Yes, there are five broad groups. I've been distracted with other matters (not least University), but I do plan to add a para on ground weta.-gadfium 08:25, 14 May 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Species jacksonus

How about a nod to weta workshops? Richard 09:22, 17 May 2006 (UTC)

There's something there already, under Weta#Cultural_references. -- Avenue 14:08, 17 May 2006 (UTC)
I think there's a mistake in calling it Peter Jackson's Weta Workshop, since it is Richard Taylor that founded and runs the companies Weta Workshop and Weta Digital. He certainly collaborates with Peter Jackson on films (and surely owes a lot of his success to the success of Jackson's films) but it wouldn't be right to call Weta Workshop Peter's company outright.
What are the rules of frame grabbing an image from a movie? is that like an album cover? I would be happy to get the KK weta lookalike image for here, once I'm sure of the licence to apply. maybe wetafx would give us one pic for publicity purposes?.moza 01:09, 21 May 2006 (UTC)

[edit] GA failed

For these reasons :

  • Please rephrase this Weta can bite, with bites from tree weta particularly common.
  • Sections General characteristics and Taxonomy and evolution needs a throughout copyedit.
  • Lead section doesn't comply with WP:LEAD.
  • The Cultural references section should be removed as the first item is already present at Weta Workshop, the second and the third items should be added as disambiguation sentences on top of the article (See Mary I of England for an example of this disambiguation placed on top of the page).
  • The References section should be uniform (using inline references or listed references). Lincher 16:02, 25 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Owl

Change "mopoke" back to "morepork". I just googled and it seems that "mopoke" is a word used more in Australia and not really in New Zealand although it does refer to the same or a very similar species. Actually if we want a NZ term for the morepork we could use "ruru." Mona-Lynn 20:41, 14 September 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Bounty?

Really? For attacking sheep? Don't have weta and kea confused at all? Some reference to the source for this would be _fantastic_. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.97.144.44 (talk • contribs)

The source would appear to be [1], which is clearly tongue-in-cheek. Any objections if I remove it from the article?-gadfium 03:55, 22 September 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Endemic?

according to this site, wetas are also found in australia, south africa, and south america. http://weta.boarsnest.net/

[edit] How fast?

How fast can a weta move? Slowly, I hope - they're scary enough as it is!

Unfortunatelly, they can be very fast if caught by surprice. I climbed on the tree once (in the Wellington area) and one fell under my shirt bit and scratched me badly. These things are pure aliens, really. --IEEE 01:49, 19 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Opening line vs taxobox

The opening line states The weta family comprises around 70 insect species endemic to the New Zealand archipelago., surely it should read something like The weta are two families that comprise around 70 insect species endemic to the New Zealand archipelago.? Or something like that? Sabine's Sunbird talk 05:56, 13 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Human ideas about wētā

I deleted this section which appears to derive from a joke page about wētā. It wouldn't be practical to boil wētā carapaces for days to make food pouches for a journey. A lot of work when a simple flax container could be woven in a matter of seconds. Kahuroa 11:23, 16 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Commercial photos

I reverted the inclusion of an external link to what appears to be a commercial site - the photos are for sale. Kahuroa (talk) 05:18, 23 April 2008 (UTC)