ALL ANSWERS · INSECTS · DAILY No. 49 · OCTOBER 22, 2026
Size It Up Insects answer: October 22
The five Insects silhouettes for October 22, with the true sizes. If you have not played yet, this page is a spoiler — play these five first, then come back to argue with the numbers.
Day 49 ran from a common red soldier beetle (1 cm) to a Queen Alexandra's birdwing (26 cm). The widest gap was round 3, European Praying Mantis against Common Earwig, at 4.6×; the closest call was round 2, Small White Butterfly against Pine Hawk-moth, only 1.5× apart — the kind of round that separates a 90 from a 60.
SPOILER · TODAY’S FIVE
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ROUND 1
House Cricket (adult) vs Common Red Soldier Beetle (adult)
Common Red Soldier Beetle · reference · 1 cm House Cricket · true length · 2 cm 2.0× longer than the common red soldier beetle
House Cricket: 20 mm body length for the selected adult. Selected 20 mm within published house cricket length 19–22 mm. Head to abdomen tip; antennae, rear appendages and legs excluded.
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ROUND 2
Small White Butterfly (adult · open wings) vs Pine Hawk-moth (adult)
Pine Hawk-moth · reference · 7.25 cm Small White Butterfly · true wingspan · 4.8 cm 1.5× shorter than the pine hawk-moth
Small White Butterfly: 48 mm wingspan for the selected adult. Selected 48 mm within published wingspan 38–57 mm. Furthest left to furthest right wingtip with wings spread.
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ROUND 3
European Praying Mantis (adult) vs Common Earwig (adult · pincers excluded)
Common Earwig · reference · 1.3 cm European Praying Mantis · true length · 6 cm 4.6× longer than the common earwig
European Praying Mantis: 60 mm body length for the selected adult. Selected 60 mm within published adult range 50–65 mm. Head to abdomen tip; antennae and grasping legs excluded.
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ROUND 4
Minotaur Beetle (male · horns included) vs Southern Hawker (adult)
Southern Hawker · reference · 7 cm Minotaur Beetle · true length · 2.4 cm 2.9× shorter than the southern hawker
Minotaur Beetle: 24 mm length including horns for the selected male. Selected 24 mm at the top of the published adult range 15-24 mm. Horn tips to elytra tip; the male's three forward horns are included, antennae and legs excluded.
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ROUND 5
Queen Alexandra's Birdwing (adult female · open wings) vs Luna Moth (adult · open wings)
Luna Moth · reference · 9 cm Queen Alexandra's Birdwing · true wingspan · 26 cm 2.9× wider than the luna moth
Queen Alexandra's Birdwing: 260 mm wingspan for the selected adult female. Selected 260 mm within the published female wingspan 250-280 mm; males reach about 200 mm. Furthest left to furthest right wingtip with wings spread.
Beat these tomorrow
Every round is worth up to 100 points: within 6% of the true size scores 100, half or double scores 45, five times off scores zero. The daily puzzle is the same five for everyone and refreshes at midnight in your time zone; if you want more than five, Size It Up Unlimited draws fresh pairs from the whole library for as long as you like.