Deinacrida connectens, often referred to as the alpine scree wētā, is a member of the Anostostomatidae family. It is nocturnal and lives under rocks between 1,200 m (3,900 ft) and 3,600 m (11,800 ft) above sea level in the South Island. The male can reach up to 3.5 cm (1.4 in) in length, whereas the female can be 7.2 cm (2.8 in), with both sexes varying substantially in colour. It is the most widespread of the eleven species of giant wētā (Deinacrida), but unlike most other giant wētā, is not a threatened species under the New Zealand Threat Classification System. It is an omnivore that feeds on plants such as Aciphylla and Gaultheria depressa. To survive the alpine environment, it is moderately freeze tolerant. The genetic structure of the species suggests that it diversified during the Pliocene mountain building that created the Southern Alps four million years ago. It was first described in scientific literature in 1939 by Swedish entomologist Kjell Ernst Viktor Ander.

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