Stick Insects Species :
Phasmid Study Group
From : .wikipedia.org/wiki/Phasmid_Study_Group
The Phasmid Study Group is a group for professional and amateur entomologists who are interested in the order Phasmatodea, ie stick and leaf insects, known as "phasmids", as well as other interested persons. Over 40 species of Phasmid have been named after members of the group. The group includes world experts in the study of phasmids worldwide.
The group was formed in 1980 and has since developed a worldwide membership. It has meetings twice a year at The Natural History Museum, London. It also distributes phasmids, free of charge, to its members.
The group has two publications. Phasmid Studies is issued occasionally and contains scientific papers and longer articles. The Phasmid Study Group's Newsletter is posted to each member twice a year, it contains shorter articles and announcements, and is printed in full colour with lots of photographs and information on phasmids.
Stick Insects are usually thin like a twig, Leaf Insects are shaped like a leaf, together they are "phasmids" in the order of "phasmatodea". Like all insects, phasmids have six legs and three parts to their body: head, thorax, and abdomen. Some have wings but few can fly. They are usually in shades of brown and green. They vary in size from 12 mm (½ in) to over 356 mm (14 in). Their defence is usually their camouflage, but a few stick insects can spray an irritating spray, and some have one or more spurs on their legs which they sometimes dig into its attacker. Males are smaller than females, and often look either very similar to the females, or so different they seem like a different species.
The world’s biggest insect is a stick insect from Sabah: Chan’s Megastick (Phobaeticus chani), one specimen held in the Natural History Museum in London has a body length of 357 mm (14 in), and measures 567 mm (22.3 in) with outstretched legs. The heaviest known stick insect is the Jungle Nymph (Heteropteryx dilatata) at 51.2 g (1¾ oz).
PSG Numbers :
Every stick insect species is given a number by the Phasmid Study Group. This is because the Latin species names of stick insects are prone to changes because of new phylogenic insights in the genus of the stick insects. This means it can be very confusing to work with species that keep changing names. The PSG numbers never change even though the Latin names of the species change.
Below you find the list of all PSG numbers of all known and named stick insects. Between brackets is the name of the person that named the species. (Tip: If you simultaneously press the Control key and F you can search this list using your web browser.)
1 Carausius morosus (Sinéty)
2 Pseudodiacantha macklottii (de Haan)
3 Bacillus rossius (Rossi)
4 Sipyloidea sipylus (Westwood)
5 Medauriodea extradentata (Brunner)
6 Acanthoxyla prasina (Westwood)
7 Clitarchus hookeri (White)
8 Bactrododema tiaratum (Stål)
9 Extatosoma tiaratum tiaratum (Macleay)
10 Phyllium bioculatum Gray
11 Cladomorphus phyllinus (Gray)
12 Anisomorpha buprestoides (Stoll)
13 Acrophylla wuelfingi (Redtenbacher)
14 Eurycnema goliath (Gray)
15 Anchiale briareus (Gray)
16 Carausius sechellensis (Bolivar)
17 Caribbiopheromera jamaicana (Zompro)
18 Heteropteryx dilatata (Parkinson)
19 Lonchodes brevipes (Gray)
20 Anchiale maculata (Olivier)
21 Extatosoma popa popa(Stål)
22 Ramulus thaii (Hausleithner)
23 Eurycantha calcarata (Lucas)
24 Same as P.S.G. 5.
25 Phobaeticus serratipes (Gray)
26 Haaniella echinata (Redt.)
98 Parabacillus hesperus (Hebard)
99 Epidares nolimetangere (de Haan)
100 Lonchodes amaurops (Westwood)
101 Lamponius guerini (Saussure)
102 Clonaria sp
103 Sipyloidea sp. “THAILAND 8″ (Brunner)
104 Phaenopharos herwaardeni (Henneman)
105 Parapachymorpha spinosa (Brunner)
106 Oncotophasma martini (Griffini)
107 Bacillus lynceorum (Bullini ea)
108 Bacillus whitei (Nascetti & Bullini)
109 Carausius abbreviatus (Brunner)
110 Hoploclonia gecko (Westwood)
111 Eurycantha insularis (Lucas)
112 Haaniella muelleri (de Haan)
113 Dyme sp.
114 Ramulus sp. “THAILAND 2″
115 Paramyronides ? sp. “THAILAND 6″
116 Pseudophasma bispinosum (Redtenbacher)
117 Dares ulula (Westwood)
118 Aretaon asperrimus (Redtenbacher)
119 Lonchodes jejunus (Brunner)
120 Carausius cristatus Brunner
121 Phenacephorus spinulosus (Hausleithner)
122 Anisomorpha paromalus (Westwood)
123 Leptynia hispanica (Bolivar)
124 Acacus sarawacus (Westwood)
125 Haaniella grayii (Westwood)
126 Haaniella dehaanii (Westwood)
127 Lonchodes megabeast (Bragg)
128 Phyllium celebicum (de Haan)
129 Lonchodes jejunus (Brunner)
130 Diesbachia hellotis (Westwood)
27 Carausius chani (Hausleithner)
28 Eurycnema versirubra (Audinet-Serville)
29 Lonchodes imitator (Brunner)
30 Pharnacia cantori (Westwood)
31 Creoxylus spinosus (Fabricius)
32 Ocnophiloidea regularis (Brunner)
33 Acanthoxyla intermedia (Salmon)
34 Tectarchus huttoni (Brunner)
35 Diapheromera femorata (Say)
36 Lonchodes hosei hosei (Kirby)
37 Lopaphus perakensis (Redtenbacher)
38 Dares validispinus (Stål)
39 Lonchodes jejunus (Brunner)
40 Lopaphus nanoalatus (Brock) “MICROWINGS”
41 No id yet, possibly Clonaria sp. “GRASS SP.”
42 No id yet, possibly Clonaria sp. “MADRAS THORN”
43 Graeffea sp.
44 Eurycantha calcarata spp. (Lucas)
45 Clonopsis gallica (Charpentier)
46 Marmessoidea rosea (Fabricius)
47 Phanocles costaricensis (Hennemann)
48 Haplopus cytherea (Westwood)
49 No id yet
50 Paranisomorpha sp.
51 Libethra sp.
52 Alienobostra brocki (Hausleithner)
53 Hermarchus inermis (Redtenbacher)
54 no id
55 Ramulus nematodes (de Haan)
56 same as P.S.G. 3.
57 Hermarchus polynesicus (Redtenbacher)
58 Pharnacia sumatrana (Brunner)
59 Phyllium bioculatum (Gray)
60 Phyllium bioculatum (Gray)
61 Haplopus micropterus (Fargeau, Serville)
62 no id
63 no id
64 Same as P.S.G. 37.
65 Sipyloidea sp.
66 Carausius sanguineoligatus (Brunner)
67 Lonchodes everetti (Kirby)
68 Lonchodes sp.
69 Dares verrucosus (Redtenbacher)
70 Haaniella scabra (Redtenbacher)
71 Bacillus atticus cyprius (Uvarov)
72 Phyllium giganteum (Hausleithner)
73 Phenacephorus cornucervi (Brunner)
74 Anchiale sp.
75 Same as P.S.G. 25.
76 Phyllium siccifolium (Linnaeus)
77 Phyllium sp. (Illiger)
78 Same as P.S.G. 30.
79 Bostra aetolus (Westwood)
80 Acanthoxyla geisovii (Kaup)
81 Acanthoxyla inermis (Salmon)
82 Rhaphiderus spinigerus (Lucas)
83 Rhaphiderus scabrosus (Stål)
84 Oreophoetes peruana (Saussure)
85 Pseudophasma rufipes (Redtenbacher)
86 Dyme rarospinosa (Brunner)
87 Parocnophilia latirostrata (Zompro)
88 Necroscia sp.
89 Sosibia parvipennis (Stal)
90 Ramphosipyloidea gorkomi (Hausleithner)
91 Same as P.S.G. 45.
92 Menexenus exiguus alienigna (Günther)
93 no id
94 Cuniculina insignis (Wood-Mason)
95 Ramulus frustrans (Brunner)
96 Menexenus nudiusculus (Hausleithner)
97 Diapheromera arizonensis (Caudell)
293 Pseudophasma phthisicum
131 Leiophasma adustum (Redtenbacher)
132 Leiophasma nigrotuberculatum (Redt.)
133 Parectatosoma hystrix (Wood-Mason)
134 Paramyronides sp.
135 Carausius sp.
136 Carausius sp.
137 Pharnacia sp.
138 Lonchodes modestus (Brunner)
139 Carausius sp.
140 Bacteria sp.
141 Clonaria sp.
142 Clonaria sp.
143 Sipyloidea sp.?
144 Ramulus artemis
145 Paramenexenus laetus (Kirby)
146 Centrophasma hadrillum (Westwood)
147 Carausius alluaudi (Bolivar)
148 Paraclonistra sp (ST. KITTS)
149 Achrioptera punctipes (Audinet-Serville)
150 Dinophasma guttigerum (Westwood)
151 Asceles margaritatus (Redtenbacher)
152 Phanocloidea nodulosa (Redtenbacher)
153 Ramulus siamensis CHIANG MAI (Brunner)
154 Acrophylla titan (Macleay)
155 Anchiale austrotessulata (Gray)
156 Bacillus atticus atticus (Brunner)
157 Ramulus sp.
158 Ramulus sp.
159 Ramulus sp.
160 Trachythorax maculicollis (Westwood)
161 Phenacephorus sepilokensis (Bragg)
162 Phenacephorus auriculatus (Brunner)
163 Sipyloidea larryi (Brock & Hasenpusch)
164 Parapachymorpha spiniger (Hen ea.)
165 Hoploclonia abercrombiei (Bragg)
166 Dinophasma saginatum (Redtenbacher)
167 Hermachus novaebritanniae (Wood-Mason)
168 Clonistra bartholomaea (Stal)
169 Lonchodes mindanaensis (Brunner)
170 Phanocloidea muricata (Burmeister)
171 Rhynchacris ornata (Redtenbacher)
172 Bacillus grandii grandii (Nascetti & Bullini)
173 Neohirasea maerens (Brunner)
174 Lopaphus sphalerus (Redtenbacher)
175 Diesbachia tamyris (Westwood)
176 Lonchodes geniculatus (Gray)
177 Haaniella saussurei (Kirby)
178 Clonistra sp.
179 Clonaria fritzschei
180 Stheneboea malaya (Stal)
181 Hermagoras cultratolobatus (Bragg)
182 Oxyartes lamellatus (Kirby)
183 Sceptrophasma hispidulum (Wood-Mason)
184 no id
185 Neohirasea sp.
186 Chondrostethus woodfordi (Kirby)
187 Creoxylus hagani (Redtenbacher)
188 Oxyartes spinipennis (Carl)
189 Pseudophasma acanthonotum (Redtenbacher)
190 Phasma gigas (Linnaeus)
191 Urucumania borellii (Giglio-Tos)
192 Orestes mohoutii (Bates)
193 Tropidoderus childrenii (Gray)
194 Rhamphophasma spinicorne (Stal)
195 Sungaya inexpectata (Zompro)
196 Baculofractum insigne (Brunner)
197 Pharnacia westwoodii (Wood-Mason)
198 Anisomorpha ferruginea (Beauvois)
199 Hoploclonia cuspidata (Redtenbacher)
200 Lonchodes malleti (Bragg)
201 Sipyloidea sp.
202 Medaura jobrensis (Brock & Cliquennois)
203 Pharnacia biceps (Redtenbacher)
204 Menexenus batesii (Kirby)
205 Phaenopharos struthioneus (Westwood)
206 Clonria sp.
207 Cuniculina sp. “BANGLADESH 13″
208 Pharnacia jianfenglingensis
209 Lopaphus brachypterus (de Haan)
210 Myronides magnificus (Brunner)
211 Cuniculina sp. “BANGLADESH 12”
212 Pylaemenes mitratus (Redtenbacher)
213 Malacomorpha jamaicana (Redtenbacher)
214 Haplopus jamaicensis (Drury)
215 Phanopharos khaoyaiensis (Zompro)
216 Medaura scabriuscula (Wood-Mason)
217 Lopaphus trilineatus (Carl)
218 Clonaria luethyi (Zompro)
219 Cuniculina sp “BANGLADESH 2”
220 Malacomorpha cyllarum (Westwood)
221 Sceptrophasma langkawicense (Brock ea.)
222 Sipyloidea sp.
223 Rhamphosipyloidea philippa (Stal)
224 Parapachymorpha zomproi (Fritzsche)
225 Clonaria conformans (Brunner)
226 Cuniculina stilpna (Westwood)
227 Entoria koshunensis (Shiraki)
228 Entoria formosana (Shiraki)
229 Ramulus? sp (Khao Yai – ronde eitjes)
230 Lonchodiodes samarensis (Conle & Hennemann)
231 Abrosoma festinatum (Brock & Seow-Choen)
232 Mithrenes panayensis (Conle & Hennemann)
233 Neopromachus doreyanus (Bates)
234 Xylica oedematosa (Karsh)
235 Brasidas Samarensis (Rehn& Rehn)
236 Dimorphodes catenulatus (Redtenbacher)
237 Pseudosermyle phalangiphora (Rhen)
238 Dinophasma kinabaluense (Bragg)
239 Olinta sp
240 Lamponius portoricensis (Rehn)
241 Carausius spinosus (Brunner)
242 Neohirasea hongkongensis (Brock)
243 Entoria victoria (Brock)
244 Cuniculina cunicula (Westwood)
245 Pylaemenes borneensis sepilokensis (Bragg)
246 Lonchodes rusticus (Brunner)
247 Lonchodes harmani (Bragg & Chan)
248 Pylaemenes guangxiensis (Bi & Li)
249 Metriophasma diocles (Westwood)
250 Bacteria ferula (Fabricius)
251 Ramulus sp.
252 Lopaphus sp.
253 Ramulus sp.
254 Ramulus magnus (Brunner)
255 Trachyaretaon bruekneri(Hennemann; Conle)
256 Orxines semperi (Stål)
257 Monoiognosis bipunctata (Cliquennois; Brock)
258 Parectatosoma mocquerysi (Finot)
259 Psuedophasma menius (Westwood)
260 Diapherodes gigantea (Gmelin)
261 Canachus alligator (Redtenbacher)
262 Stheneboea rupidiosa (Brunner)
263 Bacteria yersiana (Saussure)
264 Pseudophasma velutinum (Redtenbacher)
265 Abrosoma johorensis (Seow-Choen & Goh)
266 Agamemmon cornutus (Burmeister)
267 Asceles spec. Ban Salok, Thailand (Christoph Bauduin)
268 Leiophasma lucubense (Brancsik)
269 Pseudophasma castaneum (Conle & Hennemann)
270 Peruphasma schultei (Conle & Hennemann)
271 Lopaphus sp. Thailand
272 Spinohirasea bengalensis (Zompro)
273 Ramulus irregulariterdentatus (Brunner)
274 Dyme mamillata (Brunner)
275 Lobolibethra panguana (Conle & Hennemann)
276 Sipyloidea menptolemus (Westwood)
277 Phobaeticus heusii (Hennemann & Conle)
278 Phyllium sp. Philippines
279 Unidentified Necrosciinae (Bauduin’s Thai 2)
280 Phanocles ploiaria (westwood)
281 Pterinoxylus crassus (Kirby)
282 Lonchodes philippinicus (Conle & Hennemann)
283 Diapherodes venustula (Audinet Serville)
284 Pharnacia ponderosa (Stål)
285 Hemiplasta falcata (Redtenbacher)
286 Monandroptera acanthomera (Burmeister)
287 Eucarcharus feruloides (Westwood)
288 Phasmotaenia godeffroyi (Redtenbacher)
289 Ocnophiloidea dillerorum (Conle & Hennemann)
290 Necroscia annulipes (Gray)
291 Lobolibethra sp. Lima
292 Anchiale stolli (Sharp)
293 Pseudophasma phthisicum (Linnaeus)
These species do not yet have a PSG number:
Dyme bifrons
Asceles spec. Thailand
Baculonistria alba
Phraortes bicolor
Hermarchus sp.
Neophasma subapterum
Calynda coronata
The popular Species is in red and you can find velow some unformation about it ..
5-Medauriodea extradentata
13 Acrophylla wuelfingi
39 Lonchodes jejunus (Brunner)
55 Ramulus nematodes (de Haan)
73 Phenacephorus cornucervi (Brunner)
84 Oreophoetes peruana (Saussure)
96 Menexenus nudiusculus
118 Aretaon asperrimus (Redtenbacher)
125 Haaniella grayii (Westwood)
130 Diesbachia hellotis (Westwood)
155 Anchiale austrotessulata (Gray)
179 Clonaria fritzschei
177 Haaniella saussurei (Kirby)
188 Oxyartes spinipennis (Carl)
Anisomorpha ferruginea
214 Haplopus jamaicensis
274 Dyme mamillata
234 Xylica oedematosa
271 Lopaphus sp. Thailand
Ocnophiloidea dillerorum
Recommended websites for PSG Numbers ( Click on the website address below )
- www.lemondedesphasmes.free.fr/
- www.phasmatodea.com/web/guest/psg
- www.phasmiduniverse.com/en/phasmids-gallery
- www.bugnation.co.uk/viewtopic.php
Appearance of the Giant Prickly Stick Insect :
This species of stick insect looks more like a cactus than like a twig. Its body is bulky and covered in small spines. On its legs it has big lobes that are also spiked and look like leaves of a desert plant. Extatosoma tiaratum are often light to mid brown, but occasionally you can find green, beige or dark brown varieties. Their color depends on the conditions in which they are kept, but it is not entirely sure which conditions you need to provide to induce your stick insects to change color.
The difference between (adult) males and females is enormous. The females are bulky, thick and 15 cm long. They have lots of spines on their back and large lobes on their legs. The males are really slender, have little spines and reach a length of 12 to 13 cm. The adult males have long wings and are able to fly, while the females have small wings (about 1 inch long).
This is a subsubadult female nymph of Extatosoma tiaratum.
CARE SHEETS : ( which is highlighted in red above )
1- Giant Prickly Stick Insect
The Giant Prickly Stick Insect, also refferred to as Macleay’s Spectre Stick Insect, is a large stick insect from Australia and New Guinea. Its scientific Latin name is Extatosoma tiaratum. Like almost all stick insects it has a Phasmid Study Group number or psg number: psg 9.
This is a very popular species of stick insect, because of the large size and amazing camouflage.
This is the head of a subsubadult female nymph of Extatosoma tiaratum.
Behavior of the Giant Prickly Stick Insect
Like most stick insects this species is docile by nature. It is nocturnal and will generally only move during the night.
It has an amazing defense strategy: it will mimic a scorpion when threatened. If they are disturbed, they will curl up their tail to mimic a scorpion. Sometimes they will even raise their front legs to mimic the shears of a scorpion. Predators who are interested in eating a stick insect, see a scorpion and are not willing to take the risk and attack a poisonous scorpion. The stick insect is harmless but just uses its tail to bluff off predators!
Food and feeding:
Extatosoma tiaratum eat the leaves of blackberry, raspberry, oak, rose, hazel and eucalyptus. In the winter you can still find fresh blackberry leaves outside.
Beware of leaves from the store, which are sprayed with insecticide! Eucalyptus is often untreated, but for safety you should always inquire at the store.
This is a subsubadult female nymph of Extatosoma tiaratum. Notice the difference between this female and the picture of the male nymph posted above: males have a much more smooth skin without many spines.
Environmental conditions :
You can keep these stick insects at a temperature between 20 ° C and 30 ° C. In the night the temperatures can be allowed to drop a bit more.
This species does not have high demands regarding air humidity. They must have some water to drink almost every day, you can supply this by spraying with water onto the leaves they eat. Nymphs need more humidity than adults, because molting is easier with slightly higher humidity (around 60%). Ventilation is very important, a too humid environment without much air flow is a common cause of death for these animals.
As with all species of stick insects, the Giant Prickly Stick Insect needs an enclosure that is at least 3 times the length of the animal in height, and at least 2x the length of the animal in width. For an adult female this means at least 45 cm high (about 18 inch) and 30 cm wide (approximately one foot).
When the females are very large and heavy, it is difficult for them to climb onto glass. It’s better for your pet if you provide it with a rough surface to climb on on the side of the tank. The top of the tank should also be made of netting or a suitable rough surface to hang from, because this species often hangs upside down. Make sure the stick insects have enough strong branches with leaves to hang from and eat of.
Side view of a subadult male of Extatosoma tiaratum.
Breeding and egg care :
Males and females are easily distinguishable. Adult females are big, heavy and do not have large wings. The males are long and slender and have very long wings that reach past the abdomen. Males have very long antennae, this can already be seen in young nymphs (L5 onwards). The differences in size and body type become more and more evident as the nymphs grow.
Newly hatched Extatosoma tiaratum nymphs / Giant Prickly Stick Insects
Extatosoma tiaratum can reproduce both parthenogenetically and sexually. When the female does not mate, she will lay eggs that develop into females. When she does mate, she will lay eggs that will develop into both males and females. The nymphs born from parthenogenic eggs are often weaker and the eggs need almost twice the time to hatch than fertilized eggs do.
For breeding all you need to do is keep the male and the female together in one enclosure. When the time is ripe they will know what to do. The eggs are round and slightly shiny, they can vary in color between beige, mid brown and dark brown. On the eggs you can see the operculum, this is a sort of hatch on the egg where the nymph will come out. You don’t need to be afraid that you will throw away the eggs as if they were droppings, because they look very different from the droppings.
The eggs hatch after 4 to 6 months when the female is fertilized by a male. Parthenogenetic eggs, when the female has not been with a male, hatch after 6 to 12 months. Keep the eggs on a moist tissue paper at 25 ° C. Spray every few days with water, but allow the paper to dry completely before spraying again to prevent mold. Mold can be more destructive than keeping the eggs too dry. When nymphs hatch but walk around with the egg case still attached to a leg, you are keeping the eggs too dry.
Giant Prickly Stick Insect, Extatosoma tiaratum, San Bernardino Natural History Museum
Extatosoma tiaratum care
Adult male and female Extatosoma tiaratum
Appearance of the Jungle Nymph stick insect
This species is not long and thin like people often expect from a stick insect. The males and females are totally different, they even seem a different species. The adult females are bright green, very large and have a very wide body. Their wings are really short and lay like a cap on the back of the insect. The males are long and slender and are brown with beige in color. Their wings are very long and extend all the way down its abdomen. Both sexes have small spikes on their head and body, but the female has more of them. The nymphs of both sexes are similar in color until about L7, they are brown with white-beige patches and the females become more beige-brown every molt while the males keep their patchy look. The hind wings of both sexes are pink to red, with the males also having black stripes (or kind of webbing) on these wings.
The females reach an length of 15 cm and are the second most heavy insect in the world (the first is a big beetle). The males 10 cm in length, quite light and able to fly.
Jungle Nymph
Heteropteryx dilatata
The Jungle Nymph, or Heteropteryx dilatata, is the heaviest of all stick insects. It is very large, brightly green in color (females) and can live up to 2 years. The Phasmid Study Group gave this species the number PSG 18.
Heteropteryx dilatata occurs naturally in Malaysia.
A subadult female Jungle Nymph – Heteropteryx dilatata
An adult pair of Heteropteryx dilatata, the female is green and the male is brown.
Behavior of Heteropteryx dilatata stick insects
Generally this species is quiet during the day and active during the night. When threatened it will display a defense mechanism that can actually hurt you, therefore it is not suitable for children. When the female feels threatened, she will stand on her four front legs while keeping her hind legs and abdomen up in the air. If you touch it she will fiercely snap her hind legs together, which have very large spines on them. When you trap your hand or finger between these thorned legs, it can draw blood. The adult females will use their mini-wings to make a loud rustling noise when showing their defense behavior. All this display is meant to scare away predators.
This species is considered one of the most beautiful species of stick insect, since the female is so large and so beautifully brightly colored. This species lives and the longest of all stick insect species that are kept as pets, when cared for properly. They can live up to 2 years.
This is an subsubadult Jungle Nymph female.
Food for Jungle Nymphs:
This species eats blackberry, raspberry, rose and ivy leaves. Do not feed it exclusively on ivy. Leaves of cut flowers or plants from stores are often sprayed with insecticide!
This is the mouth and face of a subadult female Jungle Nymph – Heteropteryx dilatata
Environmental conditions
The temperature can vary between 20 ° C and 30 ° C. Room temperature is fine for this species, but growth can be delayed if kept at low temperatures.
This species needs high air humidity. Spray at least five times a week to allow the insects to drink from the droplets and to keep the humidity up. Ventilation is very important, without enough of it Heteroperyx dilatata will get problems with mold and bacteria.
Like all species of stick insect, Heteropteryx dilatata needs an enclosure that is at least 3 times the length of the body in height, and at least 2x the length in width. For an adult female this means at least 45 cm in height and 30 cm in width. Larger is always better and is also necessary if you keep multiple individuals. At the bottom of the enclosure you need to place a layer of moist soil, sand or potting earth. The female lays her eggs in the soil with her ovipositor.
This is an subadult Jungle Nymph male – Heteropteryx dilatata.
Breeding and egg care :
The difference between males and females is easy to see from an early nymphal stage. The females are beige / brown in color while the males are dark brown with beige segments in a regular pattern. A few molts before they mature, the female change from being beige to being bright green. She will stay like this all her life, while the male will never become green. When the male matures he will have long wings, the female will have only small wings that cannot be used to fly.
This species can only reproduce sexually, so one female will never produce offspring parthenogenicly. Breeding is simple, because you can house males and females together and they will mate when the time comes.
The eggs of Heteropteryx dilatata are oval dark grey balls which are deposited in the ground. Because the female lays her eggs in the soil, you always need to provide her with a box with a layer of soil. You can collect the eggs and put them in a separate box filled with damp soil. Keep the soil moist but do not allow mold to form.
This species is notorious for the long time it takes for the eggs to hatch. It may take between 12 and 14 months before an egg will hatch. That requires an awful lot of patience, because the eggs need to be kept moist for all this time. They can be incubated at the same temperature as the adults are kept, but development is faster at around 25 – 28 ° C.
Huge femele Heteropteryx dilatata (Jungle nymph)
A subadult female Jungle Nymph – Heteropteryx dilatata
Heteropteryx dilatata attack
Heteropteryx dilatata
