The A-Z of Stick Insect Care & Advice

The A-Z of Stick Insect Care & Advice

2nd edition

by Anthony Carter

All rights reserved. No part of this ebook may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the author.

The information provided within this ebook is for general informational purposes only. While I try to keep the information up to date and correct, there are no representations or warranties, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability, or availability with respect to the information or related graphics contained in this ebook for any purpose. Any use of this information is solely at your own risk.

© 2021 Anthony Carter

Table of Contents

Foreword

1. Breeding & Egg Care

Are Stick Insects Asexual?

Do Stick Insects Eat Their Babies?

How Long Do Stick Insect Eggs Take to Hatch

How to Dispose of Stick Insect Eggs

How to Hatch Stick Insect Eggs

How to Look After Indian Stick Insect Eggs

How to Tell If a Stick Insect Egg Is Dead?

What Do Stick Insect Eggs Look Like?

When Do Stick Insects Lay Their Eggs?

Why are My Baby Stick Insects Dying?

2. Feeding

Can Stick Insects Eat Any Leaves?

Can Stick Insects Eat Apple?

Can Stick Insects Eat Cucumber?

Can Stick Insects Eat Holly?

Can Stick Insects Eat Ivy?

Can Stick Insects Eat Laurel?

Can Stick Insects Eat Lettuce?

Can Stick Insects Eat Privet?

Can Stick Insects Eat Raspberry Leaves?

Can Stick Insects Eat Rose Leaves?

Can Stick Insects Eat Spinach?

Do Stick Insects Eat Aphids?

Do Stick Insects Eat Bamboo?

Do Stick Insects Eat Basil?

Do Stick Insects Eat Brambles?

Do Stick Insects Eat Cabbage?

Do Stick Insects Eat Carrots?

Do Stick Insects Eat Crickets?

Do Stick Insects Eat Eucalyptus?

Do Stick Insects Eat Fruit?

What do Indian Stick Insects Eat?

What Do Stick Insects Drink?

3. Health

Can Stick Insects Re-Grow Legs?

How Do I Know if My Stick Insect is Dying?

How Long Do Indian Stick Insects Live?

How Long Do Stick Insects Live?

Why are My Baby Stick Insects Dying?

Why Do Stick Insects Lose their Legs?

Why Have My Stick Insects Died?

4. General Care

Are Stick Insects Easy to Look After – A Beginner’s Guide

Can Stick Insects Live Alone?

Can Stick Insects Live Outside?

Do Stick Insects Need Light?

Do Stick Insects Need Water?

How to Make a Stick Insect Enclosure

What Stick Insects Can Be Kept Together?

When Do Stick Insects Reach Adulthood?

When Do Stick Insects Shed their Skin?

When Do Stick Insects Sleep?

5. Miscellany

Are Stick Insects Cannibalistic?

Are Stick Insects Dangerous?

Are Stick Insects Nocturnal?

Are Stick Insects Poisonous?

Can Stick Insects Eat Each Other?

Can Stick Insects Fly?

Do Stick Insects Attack Each Other?

Do Stick Insects Bite?

Do Stick Insects Change Color?

Do Stick Insects Eat Ants?

Do Stick Insects Eat Bugs?

Do Stick Insects Jump?

Do Stick Insects Need a Heat Lamp?

How Do Stick Insects Protect Themselves?

Why Do Stick Insects Curl their Tails?

Why Do Stick Insects Sway?

6. FAQs

Foreword

The content in this book has been adapted from blog posts and articles published on my website at www.justexoticpets.com/.com. This provides a more manageable way of reading the material in one’s own time, as well as offering a reference to return to whenever required.

All the advice and information contained within the book are offered as-is, based mainly on my experience of keeping stick insects as well as personal research I have undertaken over the years. Understand that following any of the advice or information contained within this book is done so at your own discretion and at your own risk. Common sense and sound judgement are always required when looking after any animal, but especially so when it comes to stick insects. I am neither a scientist nor a scholar – I am just a normal person with a passion for stick insects; the views and opinions are mine and mine alone and are not based on any scientific or scholarly study.

There may be some overlap within specific portions of the content, but this is unavoidable based on the topics being covered.

As a disclaimer, I do not represent, warrant, undertake or guarantee:

that the information in the ebook is correct, accurate, complete, or non-misleading;

that the use of the guidance in the ebook will lead to any particular outcome or result.

I hope, though, that at least some of the information within these pages proves useful to you in your stick insect-keeping endeavors.

Anthony Carter

March 2021

1. Breeding & Egg Care

Stick insects are among the easiest insects to keep as pets. They pretty much take care of themselves as long as you provide the right kind of food and enough space to move around. Even breeding is no big deal for the most part. Most stick insect species will breed just fine without human intervention.

Different Stick Insect Species Breed Differently

One of the most fascinating aspects about breeding stick insects is the fact that different species breed differently. There are two types of breeding to note:

Parthenogenic – No male is required to produce offspring

Non-parthenogenic – The traditional mating of male and female is required to produce offspring.

In the case of the former, offspring produced without the participation of a male are essentially genetic copies of the female. The female produces a fertilized egg that matures into a nymph and eventually an adult. Taking genetic samples from both insects would reveal they are identical.

When a male is involved, the offspring is not genetically identical. The offspring can also be either male or female. By contrast, a nymph produced via parthenogenic reproduction is always female.

Caring for Eggs

Stick insects will naturally breed by themselves without any help from pet owners. They will not necessarily take care of their eggs though. Like so many creatures in the animal kingdom, stick insects lay their eggs and then seem to forget about them.

As an insect owner, the biggest worry you have is keeping the eggs moist. The job is made easier if you separate the eggs from the rest of the environment, perhaps by putting them in a small, covered box with holes cut for ventilation. You need the ventilation to prevent the eggs from growing mold.

It can take between two and 14 months for eggs to hatch, depending on species. So read up as much as you can on whatever species you own. Also note that various species lay their eggs in different ways. It is best to mimic the natural environment in whatever enclosure you use for your sticks. So again, do your homework. Find out whether your species drops, buries, glues, or pierces its eggs.

Breeding stick insects is fairly simple. Caring for the eggs is a bit more challenging. But with enough practice, I am in no doubt that you can become an expert.

To that end, each of the articles listed below are lengthy explanations on relevant topics related to the breeding of stick insects as well as to looking after the eggs once laid.

In this chapter:

Are Stick InsectsAsexual?

Do Stick Insects Eat Their Babies?

How Long Do Stick Insect Eggs Take to Hatch

How to Dispose of Stick Insect Eggs

How to Hatch Stick Insect Eggs

How to Look After Indian Stick Insect Eggs

How to Tell If a Stick Insect Egg Is Dead?

What Do Stick Insect Eggs Look Like?

When Do Stick Insects Lay Their Eggs?

Why are My Baby Stick Insects Dying?

Are Stick Insects Asexual?

One of the most commonly asked questions about stick insects is this: are stick insects asexual? Unfortunately, the question is not as easily answered as some of the others that are commonly heard.

Some species of stick insect are asexual, others are not, and still others are both. How can a stick insect be both sexual and asexual? It is possible because of something known as facultative parthenogenesis.

Keep reading to learn all about this curious biological characteristic. In the meantime, any stick insects you might keep as pets could turn out to reproduce asexually.

Different Means of Reproduction

Before I answer the question are stick insects asexual?, let us first talk about the differences between sexual and asexual reproduction. Sexual reproduction is the most common form among living creatures. It involves both the male and female.

Sexual reproduction requires the combination of egg and sperm. Introduce egg and sperm and you end up with a fertilized egg that eventually becomes a living creature. On the other hand, asexual reproduction only requires the egg. No fertilization is required. Although fewer species reproduce asexually, those that do obviously have no trouble thriving.

What makes many stick insect species unique is that they can reproduce both ways. Why nature set things up this way is unclear. At any rate, female stick insects tend to outnumber their male counterparts due to what asexual reproduction creates.

Reproducing through Parthenogenesis

Parthenogenesis is the process by which stick insects can reproduce with just the female egg. It is considered one form of asexual reproduction. How does it work? It is fairly simple.

Female stick insects can lay their eggs either fertilized or unfertilized. Those that are unfertilized always mature into female stick insects. More importantly, the young females are exact genetic replicas of their mothers. If a stick insect ‘couple’ wanted either a male or a genetically different female, they would have to engage in sexual reproduction.

That brings us to the concept of facultative parthenogenesis. The term ‘facultative’ simply designates that the female can decide for herself whether or not she wants her eggs fertilized. If she doesn’t, she fights off male suitors vigorously. Indeed, keeping male suitors at bay constitutes one of the few times stick insects might resort to violence.

On the other hand, female stick insects sometimes welcome the advances of male suitors. There are certain advantages to doing so, including genetic diversity.

It is also interesting to note that unfertilized eggs do not hatch as quickly as their fertilized counterparts. Thus, stick insect species that rely primarily on asexual reproduction do not proliferate as easily. It could be that those species with the facultative parthenogenesis characteristic rely on sexual reproduction to keep their numbers high.

Differences Among Species

What you have read thus far about sexual and asexual reproduction in stick insects is general. There are so many species of stick insects (around 3,000 by current estimates) that there are bound to be differences in the details between them.

For example, there are some species that appear to be completely parthenogenetic. In other words, they only reproduce asexually. This is assumed because no males of said species have ever been found. Not finding males in the wild certainly does not guarantee they do not exist, but the chances of such species being fully parthenogenetic is quite high.

There are other species that produce both sexually and asexually in the wild but, when taken into captivity, revert to asexual reproduction only. Science has yet to explain this phenomenon. Nonetheless, it has been observed in labs all over the world.

Still other species reproduce in both ways with no rhyme nor reason. One group of eggs might be left unfertilized while the next is fertilized. A female might reproduce asexually 90% of the time and sexually just 10% of the time. Sometimes there is no way to know what will happen until it actually happens.

Do Stick Insects Eat Their Babies?

Some species of living