The Phasmid Study Group
CIIAIH: Mrs Judtith Marshall Dept. oTEntomology. The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Koad, London SW7 5BD. (Tel: 0171 938 93-14'; FAX 0171 938 8937)
TREASURER/MEMBERSHIP: Paul brock. "Papillon", 40 Thorndike Road, Slough, Berks. SI.2 ISR. (Tel: 01753 579447)
SECRETARY': Phil Bragg. 51 Longfleld Lone, Ilkeston, Derbyshire, DE7 4D.V (Tel: 0115 9305010)
SEPTEMBER 1995 NEWSLETTER No 64 ISSN 0268-3806
DIARY DATES 1995
OCTOBER 7th. AES ANNUAL EXHIBITION. (11.00 - 1700)
Kempton Park Racecourse, Staines Road, Sunbury, Middx.
Admission by programme at the door, 50p. The Exhibition is held at the Kempton Park Racecourse and is easy to reach by both car & rail. The M25 is very near and is linked to Kempton Park by the M3. Sunbury railway station is only a short walk away, and trains run from Waterloo, providing a regular service. There is ample parking at Kempton Park. The Phasmid Study Group will be exhibiting and we shall look forward to meeting both old and new members.
NOVEMBER 4th. DERBYSHIRE ENTOMOLOGY SOCIETY EXHIBITION. (1200 - 1630)
Elvaston Castle, Derbyshire.
If you would like to help put on a PSG display, please contact Phil Bragg.
NOVEMBER 26th. CHRISTMAS ENTOMOLOGICAL FAIR.
Granby Halls, Leicester.
1996
JANUARY 20th. THE PHASMID STUDY GROUP A.G.M.
The Natural History Museum, South Kensington, London.
(Details of this will be sent out on a separate sheet).
EXHIBITIONS & MEETINGS REPORT
EXOTIC PET FAYRE, BRISTOL, 18th June, by Nichola Waddicor (No 1146)
This was held at Filton School in Bristol, so we got up early and trolled with sticks in tow. Paul Taylor and his wife, Lesley, - brought down under false pretences, also got up at the crack of dawn, to help produce our usual "stunning" stand. 64:2
There was a good turn out of stands - most of which were the usual traders. Having said that, the visitors to the show did not seem to be spending much money. To be honest, I think this was mainly due to the fact that it was billed as an "Exotic Pet Fayre", and people seemed to be expecting more than just Snakes, Sticks, Spiders and Frogs.
One stand had brought a baby Barn Owl - this proved very popular, and so did the Chipmunks on the way in. And that was about it! Many traders were moaning as the time and effort they had put into their stand did not seem to pay off. Although the fayre was due to close at 5pm. many traders started to leave from about 3pm, and dispite quite a bit of interest in the PSG Stand, we left soon after 4pm. A wasted day? Well at least a few more people have heard of the PSG!.
WEST OF ENGLAND CREEPY CRAWLY SHOW by G.J.L.Ramel (No. 1163)
On Saturday the 24th of June the "West of England Creepy Crawly Show' was held at Newton Abbot Racecourse, and though the PS. G. was not officially there several members were as participants in other stands, including myself on the 'Bug Club' stand and Ralph Hopper on the 'South West Herpetological Stand'. Ralph had a pile of P.S.G. leaflets included in his display so we were not completely without representation.
There were 36 displays amounting to 22 traders and 14 others, some of these others were not only interesting but a pleasure to see from the point of view of their presence representing to the public parts of this society they may not have been aware even existed. Such as Roy McCormick the Devonshire Recorder for Lepidoptera, a pleasant change from set specimens of foreign butterflies, the Devon Bee Keepers Association with a hive of bees and a video, the Bug Club encouraging the public young and old to try some hands on experience of both Stick-insects and Cockroaches, A. F. Bainbridge from the Dipterists Forum with a display of set flies and Dave Bolton from the Royal Albert Memorial Museum in Exeter with a display of British terrestrial molluscs. Both Dave and A. F. Bainbridge had microscopes set up and were encouraging the public to have a closer look.
In general the quality of the displays was high and interesting though the spider and reptile people dominated the show. The usual Stick-insects were for sale from various parties with Carausius going for 50p a tub and Extatosoma for between £1.25 and £2.50 a piece, but the star buy of they day was Eurycantha calcarata at £10.95 a pair
The public flocked in and were fascinated, most stands had all the custom they could handle and the Bug Club at least had run out of membership forms by two o'clock. With the addition of adequate catering and the licensed bar the whole day was a great success. It would be nice next year if some P.S.G. members who are not involved with other groups that need them more were able to add the P.S.G. to the list of Societies and Groups on show at the West of England Creepy Crawly Show P.S.G SUMMER MEETING, 22nd JULY, THE NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM, by Nichola Waddicor The summer meeting was held, as usual, at the Natural History Museum. This time, however, the meeting was held in the Conversazione Room, a much larger room than we have previously used, with plenty of dining tables, proving to be rather a good move. With nearly 100 members turning up every available piece of available space was taken up.
The brilliant turnout also resulted in a large quantity and varied assortment of Surplus Sticks. The first speaker was Liz Newman, who gave a very informative talk on painting wildlife in water-colours. A large number of members where seen to be taking notes, perhaps we should hold a painting competition at a future meeting Liz brought along a number of examples of her work. (PS. Liz, will you paint my horse9) 64:3
All that being said - Paul Taylor will no doubt live to regret the day. He has been grovelling continuously to me, after subjecting Mark Jackson, Liz Newman and myself to a re - run of last years "Pets win Prizes" I am tempted to never forgive him - but then at least I won a new PSG "T - Shirt" - which beats a BBC Bramble bush any-day - Paul, you are forgiven!
MORE NOTES ON THE SUMMER MEETING by Paul Taylor A special thanks should go to Mark Jackson and Stephen Clark for the good job that they did in "guarding" the livestock up until the Livestock Exchange, and also for helping Ian in the Exchange. The new shirt with Oreophoetes peruana was available, and proved to be very popular. In all 40 "T - Shirts" where sold, but don't worry if you did not get one, there are still plenty available (see advert at end of Newsletter).
The afternoon was rounded off by an illustrated talk by Phil Bragg on Stick Insects in culture. I understand a report of this will be appearing in a future edition of'Phasmid Studies". My observation of the meeting in general was that everybody enjoyed themselves, and I am pleased to say that I have had two letters so far saying that it was the best meeting yet.
SALE OF LIVESTOCK BY PSG MEMBERS - The Secretary Several months ago it was brought to the committee's attention that a PSG member had advertised a large number of species of Phasmids for sale. The member concerned has assured the committee that stock being sold was not obtained through the PSG. The committee would like to remind all members of rule 20 which prohibits the sale of livestock of species which were obtained through membership of the PSG. This rule does not apply to stock which was originally obtained from other sources e.g. purchased from dealers, or collected from the wild by the member. The committee requests that any member who is not an established dealer but is intending to advertise livestock, or to sell at exhibitions, sends a list of species and the source of the stock to the committee.
The main purpose of this rule is to try to ensure that livestock is available to members who want it. This also means that members should be sending their surplus (preferably as eggs) to the livestock co-ordinator, unless they are distributing it to other members directly. With perhaps as many as 100 new members joining in a year, plus requests from existing members, there is a large demand for livestock by members.
In the last five years the committee have been asked to check into three other instances of PSG members selling livestock. In one case the member was only selling stock which was not obtained through the PSG. In the other two cases the committee requested an explanation but received no reply and the members concerned were not offered the opportunity to renew their membership of the PSG.
MARCH ISSUE OF THE NEWSLETTER. A problem occurred with the labelling on the March issue of the Newsletter, and it appears from the number of members writing in, that a considerable number did not receive their Newsletters. If you were one of those people, then we apologise for any inconvenience caused, and if you still have not had a Newsletter for the March issue, then please contact the Editor as soon as possible. 64:4
SPECIES CENSUS RETURN by James Waddicor. Members will find enclosed with this Newsletter a census form. It is important that members complete and return the forms to enable us to determine the levels of stock kept of each particular species. What has been found previously is that some species that were considered common have in fact become very scarce within the group. When you have completed the form, please will you send it to me at the address at the bottom of the form. NAME CHANGE FOR SPECIES IN CULTURE In Newsletter 63:2 under "New additions to the Species List", PSG 162 is named as Phenacephorus sp. This species has now been identified and is named as Phenacephorus auriculatus (Brunner). NEW ADDITIONS TO THE SPECIES LIST by Phil Bragg (No 445) Six more species appear to be established in culture and have been added to the PSG list. PSG 164, Parapachymorpha nigra Brunner From Vietnam, the culture is parthenogenetic although it is sexual in the wild. It was originally imported by a Czechoslovakian dealer. It feeds on bramble, rose and pyracantha, and is reported to be easy to rear. PSG 165. Hoploclonia abercrombiei Bragg From Niah National Park in Sarawak, collected by Phil Bragg and Ian Abercrombie in October 1994. Ian has established a sexual culture and distributed a few cultures of nymphs at the July meeting. This species seems to be much easier to rear than either H. gecko (PSG 110) or H. cuspidata (not established in culture so not on PSG list yet). PSG 166. Dinophasma saginata (Redtenbacher) Also from Niah National Park, collected at the same time as PSG 165. Males and females were collected but the culture is parthenogenetic. As with D. guttigerum this species feeds on Fuchsia and Willow herb. The antennae of this species are uniformly black, those of D. guttigerum have transverse stripes. PSG 167. Hermachus sp. This species was collected in Fiji by Tony James. Originally there were two species being distributed together, sometimes distributed under the name H. inermis. PSG 167 is certainly not H. inermis. Some people also appear to have been calling this culture PSG 53,1 know of no reason to think that this species is the same as PSG 53 (which is no longer in culture). The females are bright green and the males are light brown with a spiny thorax, they feed on bramble. The other species originally distributed with these may have died out. PSG 168. - an unidentified member of the Heteronemiinae Nothing is known for certain about the origin of this species, however it is very similar to Tony James' species from St. Kitts (PSG 148). As there are no other known recent imports of Phasmids from that region, it seems likely that this species was originally mixed in with PSG 148. The culture is sexual and feeds on bramble and pyracantha. The females of species may be distinguished from PSG 148 by examining the operculum; in PSG 168 the operculum projects beyond the end of the body, in PSG 148 it does not (see illustrations). There are also slight 64:5
differences in the eggs and males, the egg of PSG 168 is a uniform colour and relatively longer, the male of PSG 168 is more slender than PSG 148. If you think you have PSG 148 in culture please check to see if they are actually PSG 168 and tell anyone that has had livestock from you.
PSG 168
PSG 148 PSG 169 Lonchodes sp. This is a fairly typical species of Lonchodes, from the Philippines, the female is similar in some respects to L. amaurops Westwood (PSG 100) but the males and eggs are quite different. I believe it was collected by Oliver Zompro although I need to check on the details. There are several cultures of this species, it feeds on bramble and raspberry.
A NOTE ON "Carausius chani" by Phil Bragg There have been a number of people claiming to have PSG 27, Carausius chani, in culture. None of those which I have examined are C. chani. The confusion seems to be due to a culture of Carausius which is very similar to C sanguineoligatus (PSG 66); there are only minor differences, the most notable being the much paler knee joints of the male. Having examined a male and an egg of this culture I decided that it was just a pale variation of C. sanguineoligatus. At the July PSG meeting I was shown a female which appeared to have a different operculum from the female of PSG 66 (although I did not have time for a proper examination) and I intended to add this species to the PSG list. However having since checked my own specimens (which include the original PSG 66 culture, and specimens from the wild), I have again come to the conclusion that this is probably just a case of a slight variation. I have now been given some eggs 64:6 of this pale knee variety and once I have reared some females I should be able to make a more informed decision.
DEAD STICK INSECTS WANTED FOR MUSEUM I have received a letter from the Lyman Entomological Museum in Canada requesting dead specimens of sticks. A similar letter by the late Dr. D. K. McE. Kevan was put into the June 1991 issue of the Newsletter, but unfortunately the response was very poor. The museum has a large collection of most of Orthopteroid insects, except Stick Insects. Recently more students have become interested in Sticks and wish to do research on them. Unfortunately, the museum has difficulty in providing sufficient material, and therefore would like the co-operation of PSG Members in helping to provide some of that material. If you have any dead specimens (especially in the genus Phyllhim) and would donate them to the Lyman Museum for scientific study, please follow the instructions below: The specimens sent should be in good condition, have some sort of identification (at least a PSG number) and some sort of source indicated (country of origin and donor). Transportation is, of course, a major problem, but it could doubtless be overcome. One thing is certain though, pinned specimens would be most awkward and liable to breakages. It is suggested then, that specimens be layered on plenty of tissue paper and sent in a cardboard box, strong enough to withstand the trampling of the Post Office trained elephants that are trained for crushing parcels and the not-so-tame tigers used for clawing them to pieces! Parcels should have a Customs Label on with "Dead Insects for Scientific Study - NO COMMERCIAL VALUE" written on it. The parcels should then be addressed to:- For the attention of C.C Hsiung (Curator), Lyman Entomological Museum, Macdonald Campus, 21111 Lakeshore Road, Ste Anne de bellevue, Quebec, Canada H9X 3V9.
FURTHER NOTES ON AUSTRALIAN PHASMIDS by Paul D Brock (No 26) When discussing Australian Phasmids, Bragg (1995) commented that "..there is no publication available for identification of Australian Phasmids except for Brunner [von Wattenwyl] (1907) & Redtenbacher's (1906, 1908) joint monograph", implying that the Australian fauna was very understudied. Whilst a book on the fauna would be ideal, it is fair to comment that the Australian fauna is considerably better studied than the Phasmid fauna of many Countries, accepting the lack of recent taxonomic work. There are numerous papers dealing with pest species and others, including a very valuable Catalogue by Vickery (1983) and useful section by Key (1970 &1991) in a classic book on Australian insects. Furthermore, Vickery's Catalogue has been developed by Balderson, Rentz & Roach and is expected to appear in 1995 as Zoological Catalogue of Australia, Volume 23. Anyone with serious interest in the Australian fauna will find this study invaluable and I will provide further information upon publication, along with David Rentz's forthcoming new book on Australian Orthoptera. It is possible to examine excellent illustrations in Gray (1833), Westwood (1859), Brunner von Wattenwyl & Redtenbacher (1906 - 08) and others, to assist with identification. It is not easy to make the same comment concerning species from many other countries. I have visited the Western Australian Museum, Perth, during trips to Australia, along with Museums at Canberra, Sydney, Brisbane and Darwin. Notes on the Phasmid section of these and many other world-wide Museums will feature in a future publication (in progress). However, I 64:7
would like to point out that Bragg wrongly assumed that the "Eurycnema goliath" deposited at Perth belonged to that species. All 16 specimens (and a display item) are, in fact, Eurycnema cercata Redtenbacher and the full distribution details will be dealt with in my paper on Eurycnema, with specific reference to Australian species
Study of the literature already mentioned, including species descriptions referred to by Vickery, would enable taxonomists to identify to species level, or confirm identification of commoner and larger species in any Australian Museum. Key has made good progress on the outstanding Australian National Insect Collection at CSIRO, Canberra. New species descriptions (jointly with other authors) are in progress, but is it reasonable to comment that Australian researchers have been hampered by the fact that type material is mainly housed in European Museums and regulations in place require new type material to be deposited in an Australian Museum. There are probably a number of species yet to be described, from personal observations made in Australian Museums.
REFERENCES:
Bragg, P.E. (1995) Phasmids in the Western Australia Museum. Phasmid Studies 4(1): 1
Brunner von Wattenwyl, K. & J. Redtenbacher (1906 - 1908) Die Insektenfamile der Phasmiden, Leipzig (issued in 3 parts by Brunner 1907 and Redtenbacher 1906 & 1908).
Gray, G.R. (1833) The Entomology of Australia in a series of Monographs. Part I. The Monograph of the Genus Phasma. Longman & Co., London.
Key, K.H.L. (1970) Phasmatodea (Stick Insects). In The Insects of Australia. (CSIRO Division of Entomology), Melbourne University Press, Melbourne pp348-359.
Key, K.H.L. (1991). ibid, new edition. pp394-404.
Vickery, V.R. (1983) Catalogue of Australian stick insects (Phasmida, Phasmatodea, Phasmatoptera or Cheleutoptera). CSIRO Aust. Div. Entomological Technical Paper 20:1-19.
Westwood, J.O. (1859) Catalogue of Orthopterous Insects in the Collection of the British Museum. Part I. Phasmidae. British Museum, Londoa
NOTES ON TYPE SPECIES by Paul D Brock
When "The Phasmid Database" was published in Phasmid Studies by Phil Bragg (1992), I immediately pointed out to the author that his work, unfortunately, excluded a number of genera omitted from Bradley and Galil (1977). Whilst these have been gradually added to his records since that date, it is worth mentioning that the genus Neohirasea has, up until now, been omitted from subsequent listings of species and type genera in Phasmid Studies (1993 - 1995) and I give below the following details:
NEOHIRASEA Rehn
Neohirasea Rehn, 1904: 84 [as a subgenus of Parapachymorpha Brunner von Wattenwyl]
Type species: Neohirasea japonica de Haan [Phasma (Acanthoderus) japonicum], by monotypy [& designation] of Rehn (type locality: Japan)
NOTES
- Kirby (1904: 325) retained the species in the genus Neohirasea 64:8 - Brunner von Wattenwyl (1907: 245) transferred Acanthoderus japonicum to the genus Menexenus Stal, ignoring all references to Rehn (1904) and Kirby (1904) - Karny (1923: 236) returned the type species (and transferred several other species) to the genus Neohirasea. Whilst there may be some dispute over which species belong to the genus Neohirasea, it is generally accepted as a valid genus, including in a recent paper by Hausleithner (1992). Reference to Rehn (1904) was omitted from Bragg's notes on type species (1994). Rehn is a valuable work in its coverage of type species, e.g. 5 of the type species for genera included in my Catalogue of Peninsular Malaysia species (in press) were designated by Rehn [13 new type species are also designated for genera listed in my publication], Kirby's Catalogue (1904) was published after Rehn's work and made full use of Rehn's researches. Rehn's notes are often valuable, e.g. when discussing the genus Bacteria Lepeletier and Serville, 1827 he stated "The name Bacteria was first used in the Latin form by Lepeletier and Serville, but is usually credited to Latreille. Latreille (Fam. Nat. Regn. Anim, p.412, 1825) published simply the French form Bacteria, and included no species under it..." Whilst acknowledging the scope of Bragg's literature based research on type species, the format used is limited in usage in its present form, for the following reasons: - it is unclear who designated the type species in most instances, as this information is not provided. - An asterisk (*) before the genus indicates that it is a synonym or homonym - of which genus or genera? - Examination of type material may indicate a different line of research. It is too early to assess whether the changes proposed in PhasmidStudies (1995; 4:(1): 11-12) relating to the genera Bacidum, Romulus and Gratidia are correct. My initial research prior to publication of Brock & Shlagman (1994) indicated that Romulus was unlikely to be a valid name, hence the comment that further research was warranted and the mention of a previously "overlooked" reference. However, a change of this magnitude, based on a study of literature alone, and with doubts concerning the type species of Gratidia, was considered inappropriate. As a result the new species was described under the then recognised genus Ramulus. The genus Baculum is even more of a problem. In "Orthoptera Nova Americana" (1861), Saussure described the male Bacillus (Baculum) ramosum from Brazil, a fact not mentioned by Bragg. However, Saussure later (1869; 294) described the female and commented that the type was "labelled Brazil, but probably from Java, Indies or New Holland". What consideration was given to this aspect, in view of the potential geographical variation? Related genera normally include species from reasonably well defined geographical regions, e.g. Africa, although there are some wide variations in the literature, often due to misplacing of a species in a genus, one of my several current research areas.
MAIN REFERENCE: Rehn, J.A.G. (1904) Studies in the Orthopterous Family Phasmidae. Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 56: 38-107. 64:9
PROLIFIC EGG LAYING BY Ctenomorphodes tessulata by Phil Bragg At the PSG summer meeting I was given two adult females of PSG 155, Ctenomorphodes tessulatus (Gray) by Allan Harman. As there were only two adults I was rather surprised to find over 200 eggs when I cleaned out the cage after two weeks. In a period of 18 days 276 eggs were laid, a mean of 7.6 eggs per female per day. The cage is not heated but the very warm weather in late July and early August will of course have contributed to this high rate of laying. Three PSG 158, Baculum sp. in the same cage had a mean rate of 4.4 per female per day which, although high by most standards, is almost half the rate of PSG 155. As with many of the Phasmatinae, the eggs of PSG 155 and 158 are relatively small, and many of the Phasmatinae in culture are quite prolific layers. By contrast most Heteropteryginae are notoriously slow to produce eggs. It might be interesting to compare egg laying rates of different subfamilies to see if there is a clear trait. Obviously a few exceptions may occur within the subfamilies, for example Aretaon asperrimus (Redtenbacher) has a high rate yet all the other species (13) of Heteropteryginae which I know have been kept in captivity have very low rates, most producing only one or two eggs per week.
HEALTH PROBLEMS & PHASMIDS by Roger Reeve (No 1305) I have recently been diagnosed as having Diabetes, which presents a problem for a "Phasmid fanatic" like me. I will explain. During my second examination at the hospital, the Consultant asked if I grew Roses, I said not especially, and asked why? He then shocked me by saying I must not injure my hands or legs on the thorns of Roses. You can guess his reaction when I said I collect Bramble and am always getting the fine prickles embedded in my fingers, and that they get ignored unless they fester and swell. This must not happen, I was told, and in graphic detail was informed of the consequences that would happen if this continued, sufficient to say, I am concerned.
I use gloves for collecting and installing bramble in the cages, but it is not practical to remove sticks from the bramble with bulky gloves on. This is where most of the prickles come from I think. I have two questions:-
1) Are there any other Diabetic PSG Members out there9 2) I would welcome any advice on the above problems. (Editor's note: If any member would like to contact Roger directly, his address is: 99 Selsdon Park Road, Selsdon, South Croydon, Surrey, CR2 8JG. It would be of interest perhaps to other members who do suffer from problems when handling sticks, if they could write in and tell us of those problems, and if, and how they have been overcome).
INCREASE IN OVA PRODUCTION by Roger Reeve My tip is yet to be proved, but anyone can try this for themselves.
Have you noticed from time to time that sticks stop producing ova for no apparent reason and are usually difficult to start again? You can try diet, humidity, temperature, change the lighting, all to no avail. Try this. Introduce a species of similar size and temperament into the cage. I did this 64:10
whilst altering my cage/shed layout. I doubled up PSG 104 with PSG 101 and both doubled their ova output. I tried PSG 13 with PSG 152 with similar results. I have a theory, they stop laying to conserve energy when they have laid enough for the food and area limitation they inhabit. If, however, they encounter another species "on their patch", they feel threatened, even if no actual hostility takes place. Their reaction is to produce as many ova as possible to ensure their species survival and dominance of the foodplant.
The above examples were created accidentally and I now intend to experiment further. It would be interesting to hear from any other members with experience of this, or an alternate theory.
STICK INSECT "BURGLAR" It was reported in the Birmingham Evening Mail on June 1st. 1995 of a stick insect triggering a full scale burglar alert at Dudley Zoo in the West Midlands. The police where called to the Zoo's Discovery Centre after a burglar alarm went off, but could find no sign of a break in - and decided the alarm was faulty. Staff later found that "Twiggy", a Queensland Titan Stick Insect was missing from her cage. They found her hiding behind a poster display unit and realised that her night - time escape was the cause for the alarms to go off. The curator, Chris Round, reported. "It looks as though Twiggy went on a weekend walkabout. She must have wandered up and across one of the alarm system's sensors and set it off."
OBSERVATIONS OF Eurvcantha calcarata (PSG 23) REGARDING DEFENSIVE BEHAVIOUR AND Aretaon asperimmus (PSG 118) REGARDING RUBBING by Alex Hughes (No. 1419) In September 1994 I acquired a male Eurycantha calcarata and a smaller adult male of the same species from a Butterfly farm near where I live, I then thought it best to get a female for breeding purposes which I did and they mated soon after. The smaller male was always fought off by the much larger male whenever he tried to mate with the female, and went on his own way whenever this happened, and, to my knowledge, never approached her again. Now recently the larger male, while resting on the female or nearby, would begin to shake his abdomen, quite vigorously and in a pulsing manner against the sides of the cage, this would sometimes wake me at night as he did this quite loudly!. I sometimes spray them with a little water while in the box and they happily drink the water droplets on the sides. I wondered why he did this and came to the conclusion that it was most probably a defensive gesture but could have been a way of releasing a defensive odour. I would be open to answers on why he does this. Every week when cleaning out my cages I place all of the insects in a large Polystyrene box which has a transparent lid. Recently I was cleaning out my cages and the insects, including Aretaon were in the box as usual. I decided to take a look in the box as I heard a constant scratching noise coming from within, as I looked I noticed that a female Aretaon asperimmus was rubbing itself on the bottom surface of the box which was slightly damp, at first I thought she just had an 'itch' and was just scratching herself or cleaning herself but on second thoughts I wondered if she might be releasing some kind of sexual pheromone to attract a mate even though a male was clinging to her . I would be open to any explanations on why this species does this or if any other fellow member has encountered a similar phenomenon.
And lastly while looking through an encyclopaedia of wildlife I came across a species of Stick- insect with the name 'Clemacantha regale' it had many colours but most of which were shades of i 64:11
green, it was about seven inches long had functional wings and was supposedly female due to the presence of an oviposnuary. In January 1995 I attended the AGM in the Natural History Museum as a new member and acquired this interesting and colourful species which are now adults.
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Cartoon by Daniel Wilson (No 1286) 64:12
ANSWERS TO THE PHASMID QUIZ IN NEWSLETTER 63:11
Phasmid record holders Longest: The longest insects of any kind (excluding fossils) are females of Phamacia kirbyi (Brunner). The type specimen which is in the Natural History Museum has a body length of 328mm, and a specimen in the Brunei Museum has an overall length of 546mm. If you looked this up in the Guinness Book of Records you will have the wrong answer! They should have the correct answer next year.
Shortest. Timema cristinae Vickery, males have a body length averaging 13.7mm, the smallest recorded is only 11.6mm. Heaviest: The heaviest Phasmid is probably Heteropteryx dilatata (Parkinson) females, although there are few records of mass for Phasmids. Lightest: Difficult to know as mass is rarely recorded from live specimens. Although Timema cristinae must be a contender, the male Abrosoma discolor Redtenbacher, length 24mm, is a winged species and may be lighter.
First named: Scientific names of animals officially started in 1758. Linnaeus described and named three in 1758, although all on the same page, Gryllus (Mantis) gigas was the first; this species is now known as Phasma gigas.
PSG members to have had Phasmids named after them Ian Abercrombie: Hoploclonia abercrombiei Bragg Paul Brock: Calynda brocki Hausleithner Ulf Carlberg: Extatosoma carlbergi Beccaloni C.L. Chan: Carausius chani (Hausleithner) Allan Harm an: Lonchodes harmani Bragg & Chan Eric & Johan van Gorkom: Parahyrtacus gorkomi Hausleithner In addition, Paul Jennings is about to have a Phasmid named after him: Spinodares jenningsi Bragg (in press).
The History of the PSG 1. The Group was formed in 1980 2. The Newsletter has had three long term editorships: Tony James (issues 1-15), Michael Lazenby & Frances Holloway (joint editors of issues 20-49) and Paul Taylor (issue 50 onwards). Issues 16-19 were edited by a variety of people, although it is not always clear from the Newsletter, it seems to have been as follows: Judith Marshall ( issue 16); Peter Curry (issue 17), Paul Brock (issue 18); David Robinson (issue 19). Phil Bragg has edited Phasmid Studies since the first issue.
3. Previous Livestock Co-ordinators are: Bob Osborne (1982-1985); Tim Branney (1985- 1987); Mel Herbert (1987-1988), Phil Bragg (1989-1991), Paul Jennings (1991-1993). 4. Member No. 100 is Henry Berman.
5. 406 (see AGM report). 6 Judith Marshall (Chairman) and Paul Brock (Membership Secretary & Treasurer) have held their posts since the first committee was formed on 30th January 1982. 64:13
SOME USEFUL TIPS by Stan Pack (No 99) A Thorny Problem! Have you ever cursed the thorns on the bramble when inserting the stems into jars, well hopefully here is the answer to the problem. You will need a pair of pliers and some sort of channelling, (perhaps copper tubing or even strong plastic) which you will need to fit either side of the pliers jaws (see illustration). This would then crush the thorns on the bramble stem, making it easier (and less painful) when inserting the stems into the container. This idea has worked very well for me.
Water containers An ideal way to get nymphs started, without them drowning in that water container, is to use an empty film canister with a cross cut in the top. If you use a clear canister then you can see when the water level is getting a bit low. The film canisters are the ideal solution for keeping the food fresh in a sweet jar. For the larger^cages, then an empty Yoghurt pot, with a strong lid, and again some crosses cut into the top will not only keep that herbage fresh longer, but also stop those precious sticks from going down and drowning. 64:14
'T - SHIRTS" "T - Shirts with the design of Oreophoetes peruana, Aretaon asperrimus and Heteropteryx dilatata are now available from The Editor, Paul Taylor (address at end of Newsletter). Sizes available are Large and Extra Large, and the cost, still only £5.00 plus p&p. (UK mainland £1.00 p&p; Overseas £1.50 p&p)
Cheques should be made payable to "The Phasmid Study Group" and don't forget to state your size, name and address and which "T - shirt" Oreophoetes peruana, Aretaon asperrimus or Heteropteryx dilatata
WANTS & SURPLUSES Mark lies.(No 1339) would be grateful for any ova/nymphs of Subfamily Heteropteryginae e.g.: PSG No's 18/2^38, 69, 70, 99^110, 112; 117, 118^125^126*133. Please contact Mark lies, 79 Franks Avenue, New Maiden, Surrey, KT3 5DD. S0181 993 9808. ********
Wanted, 2 male Acrophylla wuelfingi. Also required, Dares sp. (would be interested in any Dares sp.) and Orxines macklottii. I have available for exchange nymphs of PSG No's 111, 65, 5, and 144, and ova of PSG No's 1 il, 5, 144, 104 and 1. Please contact Mike Jope, 38 Molesworth Road, Plumpton, Plymouth, PL7 4NT. ******** M
NEXT NEWSLETTER Please send all contributions to the Editor- Paul Taylor, 24 Forge Road, Shustoke, Coleshill, Birmingham, B46 2AU. England. 8 01675 481578. to reach me by 1st November 1995, or preferably earlier. Contributions can be accepted in the following forms: a. Hand-written. b. Typed c. On IBM compatible computer disk providing it is sent on a 3 5" double or high density disk Files can be accepted as Dos Text, Microsoft Word for Windows, Microsoft Works or as ASCII files. All contributions to the Newsletter will be deemed to be submitted to the French GEP he Monde des Phasmes, the Belgian-Dutch Phasma and the German Arthropoda for translation.
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"The Phasmid Study Group"