# Lord Howe island stick insect update



## hornet (Dec 12, 2010)

Unfortunately have yet to have any more hatching, its been a fairly crap season so i think i have done well considering. I have been able to sex my 3 specimens, i have 1 male and 2 females  the male and 1 of the fems are sub adult and the other fem is probably 4th instar. I can not wait for these to mature and start laying, by the looks of it the male is not far off, he is looking very plump indeed. I'm still yet to source more specimens, unfortunately the 3 specimens i have are unlikely to give me enough genetic material to keep the stock strong for anymore then a couple of seasons, they appear to be susceptible to inbreeding


----------



## richoman_3 (Dec 12, 2010)

they are looking good mate


----------



## gecko-mad (Dec 12, 2010)

That's awesome mate! What was their foodplant you have them on?


----------



## SomeGuy (Dec 12, 2010)

Are they those really rare ones?


----------



## cracksinthepitch (Dec 12, 2010)

You've done well to get them to that stage Bud, great work. You never know what might happen in a year or two they may send you some more to keep the genetics strong.


----------



## hornet (Dec 12, 2010)

Its a soft leaved Ficus species, possibly Ficus obliqua.

Yes they still are fairly rare but thanks to the captive breeding program started by Melbourne zoo these guys now have a much more positive future. Hopefully one day they can be re introduced to lord howe island


----------



## hornet (Dec 12, 2010)

cracksinthepitch said:


> You've done well to get them to that stage Bud, great work. You never know what might happen in a year or two they may send you some more to keep the genetics strong.


 
I dont think i'll have any issues getting more, just a matter of me remembering to get in contact again


----------



## sammy09 (Dec 12, 2010)

aww your so lucky to be able to help these magnificant creatures survive


----------



## junglepython2 (Dec 12, 2010)

hornet said:


> I'm still yet to source more specimens, unfortunately the 3 specimens i have are unlikely to give me enough genetic material to keep the stock strong for anymore then a couple of seasons, they appear to be susceptible to inbreeding


 
Any idea why? A lot of island species are resilient to inbreeding.


----------



## hornet (Dec 12, 2010)

really not sure, after just a few generations they show drastic decreases in egg numbers, egg size, hatch rate, survival rate and growth rate


----------



## Laghairt (Dec 12, 2010)

I would guess that as an Island species the genetic diversity would already be quite low.


----------



## varanid_mike (Dec 12, 2010)

Try feeding them tree lucern, its a better food source than the figs.


----------



## hornet (Dec 12, 2010)

varanid_mike said:


> Try feeding them tree lucern, its a better food source than the figs.


 
They refused tree lucerne when the fig was offered. I believe this was the first time this paticular species of fig was offered to lord howe island phasmids. Melbourne zoo fed them on Moreton bay fig (Ficus macrophylla) with some success but they were not able to rear full generations on it. I believe that species was offered as the form Ficus macrophylla f. columnaris is native to lord howe island, is the largest tree on the island and is believed to be one of the food plants when the insects were still on the island as they were often found nesting in hollows in the figs. The moreton bay fig has very very thick, tough leaves compared to the small leaf fig, i'm not sure if the lord howe island form is the same though. The small leaf fig has quite soft thin leaves and were suitable for 1st instars to feed from. I did loose a number of nymphs but most hatched deformed, i'm not sure of the cause, i only lost 2 healthy looking nymphs and i believe that was from not having the food plant right up to the roof, since they spent most of their time on the roof they were not getting access to the food. Really i think i had a good success rate with these, 3 out of 3 that started feeding on the fig survived. If i get good hatching and survival from the eggs this trio give me i will experiment with other food plants, including other ficus


----------



## danieloflat (Dec 12, 2010)

how much do these guys cost? where did you buy them from?


----------



## Australis (Dec 12, 2010)

hornet said:


> really not sure, after just a few generations they show drastic decreases in egg numbers, egg size, hatch rate, survival rate and growth rate


 
If you look at some fish hatcheries the same pattern is also seen, and has been well studied - it might be the same situation your observing.


:http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081211081616.htm


----------



## hornet (Dec 12, 2010)

danieloflat said:


> how much do these guys cost? where did you buy them from?


 
A few years experience, dedication and a little paper work. I havent seen these guys for sale on the private market yet, i got mine from melbourne zoo.


----------



## hornet (Dec 15, 2010)

The male matured yesterday. Very impressive looking phasmid, nice chunky femurs and some good sized spines but seems very reluctant to use them like the eurycantha do


----------

