A giant insect found outside a Walmart big-box store in Arkansas has been identified as Polystoechotes punctate, which was abundant during the time of the dinosaurs. Also known as the giant lacewing, the insect disappeared from North America in the 1950s, but a recent discovery has scientists baffled. They now believe that the entire population may exist in remote areas of the Ozark Mountains. The insect was discovered in 2012 by Michael Schwarla, director of Penn State’s Insect Identification Laboratory.
“I remember it vividly because I was walking to Walmart to get milk and I saw this big bug on the side of the building,” he said in a statement posted on the university’s website this week.

“I thought it was interesting, so I put it in my hand and shopped it between my fingers. I got home, loaded it up, and promptly forgot about it for almost a decade,” Skvarla said.

The model was initially named Onlian, but during a class in 2020, Skvarla realized that the labeling was not correct.

“It’s one of those experiences you don’t expect in a prerequisite lab course. Here we are, looking at samples to identify them, and suddenly, out of nowhere, this incredible new record comes out,” said Nastasi, one of the students in Lewis’ class.

Scientists are still trying to figure out how the insect got on the outside of the Walmart store. There are many theories, but they will take more research to come to a conclusion.

CNN reported that the giant lacewing is now part of the collection of the Frost Museum of Entomology at Penn State.