ALL ANSWERS · INSECTS · DAILY No. 50 · OCTOBER 23, 2026
Size It Up Insects answer: October 23
The five Insects silhouettes for October 23, 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 50 ran from a two-spot ladybird (5 mm) to an Annam stick insect (10.3 cm). The widest gap was round 5, Peacock Butterfly against Harlequin Ladybird, at 8.6×; the closest call was round 1, Flower Longhorn Beetle against Marmalade Hoverfly, only 1.3× apart — the kind of round that separates a 90 from a 60.
SPOILER · TODAY’S FIVE
You have not finished today’s puzzle on this device. The answers below are blurred so you can still play first.
-
ROUND 1
Flower Longhorn Beetle (adult) vs Marmalade Hoverfly (adult)
Marmalade Hoverfly · reference · 9.8 mm Flower Longhorn Beetle · true length · 7.3 mm 1.3× shorter than the marmalade hoverfly
Flower Longhorn Beetle: 7.3 mm body length for the selected adult. Selected 7.3 mm within the published adult range 7-13 mm. Head to elytra tip; the long antennae and the legs are excluded. Outline rotated to align the body.
-
ROUND 2
Two-spot Ladybird (adult) vs Early Bumblebee (adult)
Early Bumblebee · reference · 1.7 cm Two-spot Ladybird · true length · 5 mm 3.4× shorter than the early bumblebee
Two-spot Ladybird: 5 mm body length for the selected adult. Selected 5 mm from the published 4–6 mm length. This is the range midpoint, not a species-wide average. Head to elytra tip in side view; antennae and legs excluded.
-
ROUND 3
German Cockroach (adult) vs Common Wasp (large adult)
Common Wasp · reference · 2 cm German Cockroach · true length · 1.3 cm 1.5× shorter than the common wasp
German Cockroach: 13 mm body length for the selected adult. Selected 13 mm within published adult range 10–15 mm. Head to abdomen tip; antennae and legs excluded.
-
ROUND 4
Japanese Rhinoceros Beetle (male · horn included) vs Annam Stick Insect (adult)
Annam Stick Insect · reference · 10.3 cm Japanese Rhinoceros Beetle · true length · 5.5 cm 1.9× shorter than the Annam stick insect
Japanese Rhinoceros Beetle: 55 mm length including horn for the selected male. Selected 55 mm within the published male range 40-80 mm. Horn tip to elytra tip; the male's head horn is included, antennae and legs excluded.
-
ROUND 5
Peacock Butterfly (adult · open wings) vs Harlequin Ladybird (adult)
Harlequin Ladybird · reference · 8 mm Peacock Butterfly · true wingspan · 6.9 cm 8.6× wider than the harlequin ladybird
Peacock Butterfly: 69 mm wingspan for the selected adult. Selected 69 mm within published wingspan 63–75 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.