How to Breed Stick Insects
Breeding stick insects is made easier with a lot of species, such as the Indian Stick Insect, because they breed without the need for mating (parthenogenesis). You may end up with more insects than you bargained for even if you just purchase a lone female! With both species that require mating and those that don’t, the usual method of reproduction is for the female to lay eggs known as ova.
When you are dealing with a species that requires mating you will need to sex your stick insects. Females are usually both longer and wider than the males, and she will have a more pointed tip at the end of her abdomen. This tip is known as the ovipositor and is where the eggs are laid.
The actual act of mating is rather unexciting, with the male mounting the female, locking abdomens, and staying put for a number of hours. It is a process free of the courtship rituals and aggression that you find in other parts of the animal kingdom.
If you provide plenty of fresh food and housing at a suitable temperature then one stick insect will produce hundreds of eggs, maybe even more than a thousand. The eggs will be spread over a wide area, and are usually just deposited or squirted out. With so many species there are of course exceptions, such as the Javanese Stick Insect, Florida Stick and Giant Spiny which bury their eggs, and there is even one species (Cyphocrania gigas) which shoots its eggs across a range of some twenty feet! When you have stick insects that prefer to bury their eggs then you need to prepare nesting areas – these are just small pots of sand or earth around two inches in height. The base of a pet bottle can make a good nesting area. As well as insects that bury their eggs, there are some, like the Pink Winged Stick Insect, that stick their eggs on all surfaces including leaves. If you have a Pink Winged be careful when replacing the food and look out for eggs on the leaves.
Different stick insects have different eggs, and some of them look just like droppings so if you are novice be vigilante when replacing the substrate. One of the most common pets is the Indian Stick Insect, and the eggs are difficult to identify because they are so small. To identify an egg look out for a lid-like shape from which a nymph could emerge.
Once an egg is laid the time taken for a nymph to emerge will depend on the species and the temperature of the housing. It can take up to a year for nymphs to hatch, but the cycle can be sped up by increasing the temperature of the vivarium. As long as the housing is not too dry and has good ventilation you should get a reasonable yield from the eggs, although this will vary depending on whether they are fertilized or parthenogenetic (parthenogenetic eggs can have very low yields in some species).
Once your nymphs emerge they need to have immediate access to fresh food. Stick insects have delicate bodies at the best of times, but when nymphs it is certainly advisable to avoid handling. Overcrowding when breeding stick insects can also lead to damaged limbs so you need to be prepared to provide separate housing as the nymphs grow. The next thing you know they will be molting and mating!
