The whole internet can't identify this mystery cocoon


(Image: Troy Alexander/Tambopata Research Centre)


Like a tiny insect Stonehenge, the mystery of this 2-centimetre-wide structure has captured the imagination of entomologists and amateur bug-spotters around the world.


Troy Alexander, who noticed the unusual construction while volunteering at the Tambopata Macaw Project in Peru, calls it a "maypole with a horse corral". He posted photos on Facebook and Reddit asking if anyone could identify it – and despite his cry for help going viral on blogs and websites around the world, it remains unanswered.


Alexander says that he saw several of these around the Tambopata Research Center, where was staying. In each case, they looked the same, so they're not likely to be a half-finished cocoon or larger structure, for example.


See more close-up photos of the structure – especially if you think you know what it is.


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