How to Care for Walking Stick Bugs

Stick insects, also known as walking sticks, are bugs that use their resemblance to twigs and branches as camouflage to hide from predators in the wild. They, along with leaf insects, comprise the order Phasmida, of which there are approximately 3,000 species. A few of the hardier species of walking stick, especially the Indian stick, are popular among insect enthusiasts. Their popularity is no doubt due in part to their unusual appearance, but it is also because despite being a bit fragile, walking sticks are low-maintenance bugs.

Things You'll Need

  • Vivarium
  • Lightbulb
  • Water
  • Misting bottle
  • Newspaper
  • Plant leaves (blackberry, oak or hawthorn)
  • Romaine lettuce (optional)
  • Sticks or brambles
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Instructions

  1. Housing

    • 1

      Give your walking stick plenty of room. An aquariumlike glass tank called a vivarium is an ideal home for your insect. A good rule of thumb is to provide a vivarium three times as high as the length an adult walking stick grows. Walking sticks need to hang from plants to shed their skin, so provide your insect enough room to do so. Make sure the vivarium is set up so that you can easily hang and replace food plants.

    • 2

      Heat the walking stick's cage to the proper temper. Most walking sticks thrive in temperatures around 75 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit, though the Indian stick and certain other species do best at normal room temperatures of between 60 and 70 F. Maintaining the whole room at the proper temperature is easiest, but you may want to put a lightbulb over the vivarium for walking sticks that require higher temperatures.

    • 3

      Mist the inside of the vivarium with water every evening to be sure your walking stick has enough humidity in its environment.

    • 4

      Line the vivarium with newspaper and replace the paper as needed. The frequency of cleaning depends on the amount of food your walking stick eats and whether there is more than one stick insect in the cage.

    Diet

    • 5

      Feed your walking stick plenty of fresh plants, such as the leaves of blackberry bushes or oak and hawthorn trees.

    • 6

      Offer romaine lettuce if you cannot find plentiful leaves that the walking stick enjoys. Wash the lettuce before giving it to your insect, and remove any brown or wilted portions.

    • 7

      Make sure there are a few sticks or brambles suspended from the top of the vivarium on which the walking stick can both feed and hang to molt.

    • 8

      Place a supply of fresh drinking water in a shallow bowl in the vivarium.