Phobaeticus chani, aka Chan’s Megastick named after amateur Malaysian naturalist Chan Chew Lun, is the longest insect in the world. Phobaeticus chani, which can only be found in Malaysian State of Sabah on the island of Borneo so far, just has been tapped as one of top ten new species found in 2008 by the International Institute for Species Exploration, Arizona State University. It ranks No. 2.
The one specimen (out of only six currently known) collected in the Natural History Museum in London is the first and also the largest Phobaeticus chani. It measures a horrifying 56.7 cm (22.3 in) when front legs was fully extended. Mr. Chan Chew Lun obtained the animal from a local collector and later donated to the Museum in 2008.
The remaining top species are:
No.1: A Palm that Flowers Itself to Death, Tahina spectabilis, aka Tahina Palm
No.3: Pea-sized Pony, Hippocampus satomiae , Satomi's Pygmy Seahorse
No.4: A Mere Thread of a Snake, Leptotyphlops carlae, Barbados Threadsnake
No.5: Welsh Rare Bit, Selenochlamys ysbryda, Ghost Slug
No.6: A Snail that's Whorls Apart, Opisthostoma vermiculum
No.7: Finding Nemo's True Blue Cousin, Chromis abyssus, Deep Blue Chromis
No.8: Devonian Delivery, Materpiscis attenboroughi, Mother Fish
No.9: No Jump in this Bean, Coffea charrieriana, Charrier Coffee
No. 10: Spray-on New Species, Microbacterium hatanonis, extremophile bacteria discovered in hairspray.
Source: Top 10 New Species – 2009, Phobaeticus chani Photos (NHM, Nature)