It was discovered in 1980 in the Great Sandy National Park in Queensland, Australia, by David C.

The Cooloola monster is a robust subterranean insect, characterised by very short antennae with ten bead-like segments.

[2] The sexes are different, the male being brownish and well-sclerotized (armoured), while the female has a relatively soft exoskeleton and is usually whitish in colour, as are the juveniles.

The mouthparts are also unusual for ensiferans, having a knife-shaped lacinia (tip of the maxilla) and small elongated mandibles.

The insects live in sandy soil near streams under Australian sheoak trees and are occasionally found hiding under stones or logs.