Annam Walking Stick - Medauroidea extradentata

Also called the “Vietnamese Walking Stick”, this is the last live insect specimen I have from my time as an undergrad at the University of Toronto. Had to really look around to identify this insect, and using resources outside bugguide. Canada only has one specie of Stick Insect: the Northern Walkingstick (Diapheromera femorata) and this one is definitely not it. I thought this might be the Indian Stick Insect (Carausius morosus) as it looks very similar, and has a lot of use for education purposes in lab. In fact, that specie has been nicknamed the ‘laboratory Stick-Insect’. That said, the head is what solidified the identification of this Phasmid: the head shape was a perfect match, and there are 2 spikes on the head (indicating this one is a female) as well. Researching this insect, my suspicion is that this one is a molt or two away from adulthood: nymphs tend to have green legs while adults are colored brown all over. 

This Phasmid is a strict vegetarian; they spend their nights in the treetops looking for a snack and camouflage to avoid being hunted in the daytime. Males and females are both wingless, so they slowly walk everywhere they need to go. Like the Spiny Leaf Insect, they can stay still or wobble in the breeze if they sense they are threatened, as this one did when I held it. A preferred tactic of theirs if to feign death and pull its legs tight against its body (making it resemble a long stick while also making its legs less vulnerable). If they’d fall out of the tree, the fall wouldn’t hurt them much. Also like the Spiny Leaf Insect, the Annam Walking Stick has popularity as a pet insect due to its broad diet, breeding ability and relatively low care demand. Just make sure you keep it in its terrarium; there doesn’t need to be more invasive species out there right now! Particularly since a broad diet means that the Walking Stick would have plenty to eat out there… 

Since these insects technically belong to U of T, I’ve labelled this image with the mantis logo. Pictures were taken on September 19, 2012 within the labs of the University of Toronto with a Samsung Galaxy Glide