Chairman: Mrs Judith Marshall Department of Entomology British Museum (Natural Histo,ry) Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD

Membership: Paul Brock (Phone 0753-79447) "Papillon", 40 Thorndike Road Slough, Berks SL2 lSR

NEWSLETTER NO . 25 December 1985

At the AES Exhibition this year your Group's tables seemed to be even more thronged than ever, probably because of our continued emphasis on giving away sticks and eggs, in pleasant contrast to the high prices of the dealers. Thanks to the dozen or so members who provided ,18 species - numbers 1, 3, 4, 5, 9, 13, 15, 18, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 32, 38, 44, the second Dares species and a new Ctenomorphodes species; many of these were helpfully brought already packed into cultures. Our display consisted of adult pairs of a few of the species given away (including the spectacular Heteropteryx dilatata) and a range of PSG Newsletters. Eight new members were recruited. Thanks also to those who brought displays, thoughtfully provided empty containers and spare food (for the sticks~) and stayed to help visitors out at the stand. But no marks to whoever dumped a load of large Thailand sticks in a Woolworth's plastic bag which, when found crumpled late in the afternoon, contained many discarded legs and 5 sticks so badly damaged that they had to be killed.

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING - This will be held on Saturday 8th February 1986 at the usual venue in the Conversazione Room (appropriately behind ) in the British Museum (Natural History) in South Kensington. Opening time 10 a.m., Committee Meeting 11 a.m., AGM 12 noon, and Paul Brock's (No. 26) new 30-minute 12-species video 2.30 p.m. Please bring sandwiches.

DEADLINE - Please send all contributions for the next Newsletter by 15th February to Michael and Frances at 9 Oaklands Court, Nicoll Road, London ~~lO 9AU.

FORTHCOMING SPECIES ,REPORTS Our grateful thanks to those who have agreed to write the following: Dares species (PSG 38 and 69) by Paul Brock (No. 26) for the March 1986 issue. Baculum impigrum (PSG 24) by Jonathan Cocking (No. 82) for the June 1986 issue.

Heteropteryxdilatata (PSG 18) by Mel Herbert (No. 232) for the September 1986 i~sue. Haaniella echinata (PSG 26) by Jonathan Cocking (No. 82) for the December 1986 issue . EUrycantha species (PSG 44) by Mel Herbert (No. 232) for the March 1987 issue. sanguineoligatus (PSG 27) by John Slater (No. 183) for the June 1987 issue. As most of these species are fairly new to the Group, it is particularly important that all of us who have had experience of them send in our results to the members listed above - by not later than 2 months before the issue dates given. Then the Group can benefit from a variety of experiences, which can be important for successful rearing. QUERIES We are accumulating a number of queries which we cannot answer ourselves . The Group needs someone with technical knowledge to provide answers for these - and other such queries in the future - so do please write to us with your answers if you can help. The queries so far can be summarised as: 1 . Why do some sticks lay large eggs and others small (not necessarily related to the stick size); and why do some lay many eggs and others few? (from

Stan Pack, No o 99).

2 0 Why do some sticks exude bubbles of liquid from their mouths, even when undisturbed, and even if their food is not sprayed? (for C. morosus from

Debby Wale, No o 293, and for A. prasina adults and E. tiaratum nymphs from Howard Turner, No. 222) . 30 Why do some (all?) long-feelered sticks sometimes suck their feelers, particularly after being sprayed with water? (from Michael and Frances, No. 3) . 4. What is the purpose of the red patches on the inside of the front legs of C. morosus? (from Vernon Bayliss, No. 15).

SURPLUSES - Member 183 has surplus of species 4 , 22 a nd 27 .

HOW WILL YOUR STICKS FARE WHEN YOU GO ON HOLIDAY? We had very few answers to this. Paul Brock (No. 26) establishes growing foodplants well in advance. These will obviously keep fresh the best, but it could be difficult to provide enough food for greedy species like Eurycantha and E. tiaratum. Paul also puts sawdust at the bottom of his cages to help reduce mould. L.J. Howlett (No. 63) finds that his normal method keeps the bramble fresh enough. He uses a large jam jar filled with water, with holes pierced in the lid large enough to insert the foodplant. This last wouldn't do round here, where in hot weather our bramble goes limp in under a week even in water. So what do we do? Well, we don't go away on holiday~ (Eds.)

THOUGHT FOR THE ISSUE - Do our sticks know they are confined?

HEAVY PHASMIDS by Paul Brock (No. 26) If anyone would care to risk injury by weighing their Heteropteryx dilatata live adult females, they may be able to have an entry in "The Guinness Book of Facts and Feats" Fourth Edition ~ The current edition's record (one of the "heaviest insects" category) is 51. 2 g (1. 81 oz') for a 140 mm specimen from the London Zoo. A dead female in my collection measures 160 mm, and I reared one fairly recently a fraction short of this length (ex ova, Michael Yeh). Michael and Frances (No. 3) are also rearing specimens close to this length. Obviously specimens around this size may be heavier than the Zoo's , in their egg-laying prime. An accurate set of scales is needed by the brave participant, a n d if the details are sent to me, I can pass these on to- Gerald \'1ood of Guinness Books .

STICK DEA~~S by Michael and Frances (No. 3)

Fo~ us these most often occur shortly after shedding or food changing, and so we now try to avoid having these two factors together by putting newly shed sticks in other cages rather than on fresh food. STOCKS OF EUROPEAN STICK INSECTS NOW IN CULTURE by Paul Brock (No. 26) Members may be interested to know that the following stocks are in culture in the UK - the source is also given.

BACILLUS ROSSIUS (Rossi) - Parthenogenetic except where stated. Foodplants: bramble, rose, oak. France Northern (Boulogne) Stan Pack France Southern via Maxwell Cooper Corsica long-standing culture Sardinia (Giara de Gesturi) April 1982 via Ulrich Ziegler Bisexual stock, adults smaller than usual. Yugoslavia (Lanterna, near Porec) June 1983 Paul Brock Formerly thought to be B. atticus, which has more specialised foodplants.

BACILLUS CYPRIUS, Uvarov - Females only. Native foodplant: Lentisc. Cyprus (Near Governor's Beach) June 1985 Paul Brock A scientific paper, describing the egg and adult, etc, is in preparation, and details will be given when published.

CLONOPSIS GALLICA (Charpentier) - Females only. Foodplants: bramble, rose. France Southern (Petit Camargue area) May 1985 Howard Turner France (Foret de Chiz~)September-November1984 J.M. Guerineau France (Varennes sur Loire) Jean Luc Lambert Note - I have checked the identity of the first two named stocks (and we that of the third - Eds.) .

Small stocks are also held of the "British" species prasina (Westwood) and hookeri (White). I would be interested to hear of other stocks, and possibly some crosses may be attempted in due course.

SELECTED FURTHER FOODPLANTS FOR EURYCANTHA SPECIES by Frank C. Elia (No. 282) Schefflera (Umbrella Tree) Philodendron (many) Spathiphyllum (Peace Lily) Morus (Mulberry) Vitis (Grape) Viburnum Ficus (Creeping Fig, Fiddleleaf Fig, etc) (Wandering Jew) Malus sylvestris (Crab Apple) Many of these are common house plants and, except for Crab Apple and Viburnum and perhaps Mulberry, can be easily grown in a house with a sunny window.

FOODPLANT NOTES by Les Fox (No. 50) Libethra regularis seems to be the only species that likes broom. Calynda species' (PSG No. 52) natural foodplant is Mimosa pudica (sensitive plant) according to Alan Gange (No. 17). Seeds of this can be obtained from Dobies.

ROWAN (MOUNTAIN ASH) FOODPLANT by Michael and Frances (No. 3) This is popular with all our large, bulky sticks (PSG Nos. 9, 18, 23, 26 and 44). It keeps well in water. A NOTE ON SOME FOODPLANTS by Allan Harman (No. 189 ) New Zealand stick insects (two species) were accidentally introduced into England - Devon and the Scilly Isles - some years ago, presumably with the now extensive New Zealand flora in these areas. One species, (White), has also been recorded on the island of Rossdohan, in Kerry, Eire, where New Zealand flora have also been planted. Salmon, 1955, reports that all species of s tick eat Manuka (Tea-tree), though only C. hookeri can be reared successfully on it alone. Acanthoxyla sp. are reported to feed on Rata, Pohutakawa and possibly Rimu and Totara. Argosarchus sp. feeds on Rama-rama. These plant names are of course Maori names and therefore quite confusing to those of us who do not have a knowledge of local names of plants. Therefore I list below some of their characteristics.

MANUKA - , J.R. and G. Forst. - Myrtaceae In New Zealand this grows to 30 feet in height. In Britain this plant can be cultivated outside in the south western counties though some shelter is required. It is an evergreen tree, or shrub up to 10 feet. Some varieties are "Keatleyi" - tender and recommended in a cool greenhouse and "Nanum" - a dwarf variety which can be grown outside but needs protection in winter . It is not suitable for dry or calcareous soils.

RATA There are two species of tree called Rata in New Zealand. The northern one is Metrosideros robusta, Cunn. - Myrtaceae a huge tree growing to over 200 feet. The southern counterpart is M. umbellata, Cav., growing to 70 feet.

POHUTAKAWA - M. excelsa, Sol. - Myrtaceae This is the New Zealand Christmas tree, growing to 100 feet.

RAMA-RAMA Myrtus bullata, Sol. - Myrtaceae A tree growing to 30 feet in height.

RIMU Dacrydium cupressinum, Lamb - Podocarpaceae Another huge tree, over 100 feet high.

TOTARA - Podocarpus totara, Bean. - Podocarpaceae Ano ther tree 100 feet high.

Salmon, 1955, states that Clitarchus hookeri in New Zealand breeds both parthenogenetically and by normal sexual mating. In this country only partheno­ genetic rearing has been recorded. Salmon also states in the same paper that, of the eight species of the genus Acanthoxyla recorded in New Zealand, in only one species, A. senta, Salmon, has the male been recorded. This species is restricted to Three Kings Island. Incidentally, another member of the genus Leptospermum, L. laevigatum, is recorded by Le Feuvre, 1936, as the foodplant of Phalces longiscaphus, de Haan, in South Africa. This species feeds on rose in captivity (Harman, personal observation) .

Reference Salmon, J.T., 1955: Stick Insects, Tuatara, Journ. BioI. Soc. 5 (3) 77-81. 25: 5 ­

THE GENUS EXTATOSOMA GRAY by Allan Harman (No. 189) Most if not all members of the PSG are familiar wi th at least one species of this fascinating genus. I refer to E. tiaratum (Macleay). This spectacular species has been reared in the UK commonly for a number of years. There are two other described species which members may have heard of but are not familiar with. One of these is E. elongatum Froggatt from Australia and the second, E. papa Stal from Papua New Guinea. E. elongatum females are extremely spiny and, from a preserved specimen, appear to be mottled. E. papa females have a very prominent white "V" behind the head, and the flattened portion of the abdomen is almost completely circular. Gurney, 1947, gi, ves the following key to the genus females:

1. Fifth, sixth and seventh terga bearing lateral expansions which overlap when seen in dors al view...... 2 Fi fth, sixth and seventh terga bearing much smaller non-overlapping expansions elongatum 2. A conspicuous V-shaped pale mark on mesonotum, metanotum and first tergum each with a pair of erect, well developed lamellae, dors al lamellae of fifth and sixth terga each occupying about one third the lengthof segment, the base of each scarcely wider than apex and not extending in front of middle of segment; a compound lamellate spine on mesonotum between bases of tegmina papa No V-shaped pale mark on mesonotum; median lamellae of metanotum and first tergum absent or weakly developed, spines occurring there either separate or weakly confluent basally; dorsal lamellae of fi fth and sixth terga extending in front of middle of segmen ts, the base of each lamellae wider than the apex; spines at the base of mesonotum individual ·ti aratum

E. papa was reared for one generation in culture in the UK. The adults were originally collected at Wau, Morobe Province, during September 1977; from eggs laid by 4 females some 36 hatched and fed well on Quercus i lex and Q. robur. Unfortunately eggs laid by this culture failed to hatch. E. elongatum seems to be confined to the eastern States of Australi a though very little has been written in the literature and I know of no records of this species being cultured. There is also another species which occurs in the mountainous regions of Papua New Guinea. I have seen a number of dead specimens in a collection at the Wau Ecology Institute Museum. To the best of my knowledge the male of E. papa has yet to be described, but can be readily distinguished from that of E. tiaratum by his clear wings and a white dot behind his head.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN EURYCANTHA SPECIES PSG Nos. 23 AND 44 by Michael and Frances (No. 3) 1. Eggs of 23 have a rounded operculum, are greyish fawn and very mottled, whereas eggs of 44 have a drop-shaped operculum, are bluish grey and less mottled. 2. Colour between segments under body is bluish grey in adult 44 and pale cream in adult 23. Adult 44 are usually less dark than adult 23. 3. Adult males' defensive smells are different. 4. Adult 44 are about a head longer than adult 23. 5. Adult 44 females are much more aggressive than adult 23 females. 6. Adult 44 males are more aggressive and smell more often than adult 23 males, and prefer rapid stabs with their back legs to prolongued pinches. o 7. If you heat your stick cages, 44 should not be kept above 75 F. 25: 6 ­

DEFORMED CARA USI US MOROS US EGG HATCHI NG by M. J. Outred ( No . 290) I h ave h a d over the year s many C. moros us e ggs which we r e deformed in size, sha pe and colour, and most o f them h atched i n to ord ina r y nymph s .

o I Br i ght o r ange Red patches Br own patches

~ Very l a r ge Very small Operculum Dus ky b ro wn

The d r awi n g shows s ome o f the t y p e s o f e gg which I have h a d s o far . The l ight o r an ge ones a r e very brittle. I h a ve h ad several eggs with t wo h oles in the ope r c u l wn , b ut h ave never seen one with th r e e holes. When my C. mo r o s us adults start t o lay, the y quite regularly s e e m to p roduce one o r t wo eggs each, about a quarter of the normal size (see l ast d r awing) , before the normal sized eggs come along. These eggs never h atch and have h ardly any "yolk" in them f o r the embryo. Some other species also produce weird e ggs - I h ave had very sma l l E. t i aratwn eggs and a twisted L. regularis egg.

PSG No o 1: CARAUSIUS MOROSUS, de Sinety, 1901 by Alain Deschandol (No o 238) ­ Translated by Catherine Hughes (sister of No o 254) - Drawings b y J ohn Gilbert (No o 274 )

Synonym: Dixippus morosus

Culture History : According to Ragge (1973), all the present cultures in Eu rope probably stem from eggs sent from Southern India during the period f r om 1898 to about 1911 0 Some of these eggs were collected a t about 6000-7000 f t in the Palni Hills (where the temperature is not much warmer than in Britain), but the location given by Brunner is Trichinopoly in the (hot) plains o Intriguingl y, Michael (No o 3) l ived in the latter from 1940 to 1944 and did not see any, although even then collecting insects:

Adults: The female is almost cylindr ical with a body length of about 8-10 cm . Her maximum thickness is 5 mm, l ess at the extremities . The antennae are 4 cm long o Specimens are usually green or f awn , but occasionally dark brown - Torben Smith (No. 220) has had patchy individuals . Viewed from above the female appears extremely smooth, even more so because of her uniform colour . The underside is more irregular in shape and colour o Examination with a magnifying glass reveals tiny

"warts" on most of the mesothorax, like the small spines on the femurs 0 The front femurs have a characteristic shape which a l l ows the head to be tucked in when the limbs are stretched out (see drawing): these £emurs also have a red colouration on their inner surface . 25:7 ­

...... --...-_-.....

In culture, this species breeds parthenogenetically (L; e. wi thout males) but males do arise spontaneously. This is said to happen no \ more than about once per thousand females, but Michael and Frances (No. 3) \ once had one and then two in successive generations of about'30 females each. Bergerard (1961) found that 100% males can be produced by 0 incubating the eggs at 30 e for the first 30 days. Similar incubation but for decreasing periods produces gynandromorphs (hermaphrodites) with increasingly female characteristics, and these also arise in normal cultures. The adult male body length is usually 5-6 cm and width 1.5-2 mm; his limbs and antennae are proportionately longer than the females'. Males have a red colouration under their thorax, but no red on their legs - their main body colour is brown. Their terminal segments are swollen and they may lack cerci. Parthenogenetically produced males have been observed to mate but, since they must be genetically still females, no truly bisexual culture can result. Neither males nor females have wings. Adults live about 6-8 months.

Ova: These resemble lupin seeds with a pale yellow cap on one end. They are no more than 1.5 x 2 mm, and normally a uniform dark brown. During her lifetime the female lays some 200-400 eggs, which she . ',,,:":' projects in the air wi th a flick of her t.ai L She lays roughly :',' )<.4­ 0 2-6 eggs per 24 hours, mostly at night. Eggs hatch in about 100-200 days, again mainly at night.

Nymphs: On hatching, the young nymph resembles the adult except that its colour is brown: it is about 12 mm long. It does not feed at first but instead prefers to drink dew droplets on the foodplant. In the course of successive moultings it takes up the colour of the adult - after 6 moults in 4-5 months it reaches adul t.hood, About 2 weeks later females start laying.

Defense: This species' main defense mechanism is its ability to put itself into an apparently cataleptic state, when it remains completely immobile, simulating death. With its legs and antennae in line with its body it is then the best straight twig mimic so far available. It may fall to the ground and remain in this state for several hours before suddenly getting up. Its colour also helps to make it difficult to

distinguish from the foliage p When disturbed, like many (all?) sticks, it may sway from side to side. This could be mimicking a twig swaying in the wind and 'has also been shown to deter pecking predators (Ruppr~cht, 1971). .(S~ 8 ­

Again, like many (all?) sticks, when disturbed it may curl its tail like a scorpion.

Foodplants: Bramble, , ivy, oak, rose, hawthorn, lilac, rhododendron, begonia, potato leaves, forsythia, parsley, daffodil, pyracantha (but not the

otherwise widely accepted beech, according to Les Fox, No o 50)0 It is sometimes stated that this is one of the few sticks which will not eat bramble - but this is wrong. Michael Outred (Noo 290) found that adults reared on either privet or bramble ate only the foodplant they had been brought up on, although his nymphs eat both.

Comments: This species is now well adapted to the European indoor climate. As Torben Smith (No. 220) points out, it is very easy to keep and one often gets very nearly 100% success rate. No special precautions need to be taken for eggs, nymphs or adults, and the species does well at room temperature.

Experimental Studies: Since the beginning of this century, this phasmid has been the subject of numerous studies in European universities, so much so that it is

sometimes known as the Laboratory Stick Insect o Ulf Carlberg (No. 28) found that, of the 1970-1979 papers on all phasmids, about half dealt with C. morosuso Often

reported are the factors which influence its colour o

Colour Variations: Each insect reacts individually to the surrounding conditions, and the colour of the parent does not affect that of her offspring . If the

temperature, humidity or illumination is increased, the insect becomes paler o The table (after Beier, 1957) shows the different colours taken up in different coloured lights and at different humidities.

Humidi ty Illumination Low Medium High

Bright yellow or white Light brown Yellow Yellow/Brown

Green light Brown Green Brownish

Dim colours (blue, red, etc) Brown/Black Brown/Black Brown/Black

Dim diffuse Green Green Green

Darkness Brown Green Brown

Through a microscope Chopard (1965) fOW1d under the skin three types of pigment

- green, red and brown 0 When the insect changes colour, these pigments are dis­ placed horizontally (red) or vertically (green and brown) • The foodplant can also affect the insect's colour. Paul Brock's (No. 26) new book states that nymphs fed on potato plants are never green and those fed on

forsythia or daffodil become very yellowo

Postcript (from Vernon Bayliss, No. 15): My bedroom has been described as a "jungle" for obvious reasons - I have over 100 pot plants as well as cages and fishtanks. Many sticks, particularlyC. morosus, live as they please in the room on the plants. I have found Tradescantia, Rhoicissus, Plectranthus, , Zebrina, Begonia, Mimosa, Citrus, Kalanchoe, Dizygotheca, Croton, more surprisingly succulents such as Bryophyllum, Echeveria and Sedum, and plants in the genus of Ficus (despite the latex) fall prey to C. morosus. I have had a male C. morosus who would have nothing to do with a C. morosus female but tried repeatedly to mate with a S. sipylus.