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''Acrophylla titan'', the titan stick insect, is the second-longest
Titan stick insects are pale brown-grey in color and can grow up to in body length. Their long, wavy cerci are a unique trait of the species. Males and females can be easily distinguished due to the females being larger and having sharp spines on the legs. Males are able to fly but females are flightless.
Phasmid Study Group: Acrophylla titanQueensland Museum Factsheet
{{Taxonbar, from=Q481994 Phasmatidae Insects of Australia Endemic fauna of Australia Insects described in 1827
stick insect
The Phasmatodea (also known as Phasmida or Phasmatoptera) are an order of insects whose members are variously known as stick insects, stick bugs, walkingsticks, stick animals, or bug sticks. They are also occasionally referred to as Devil's da ...
found in Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
. First described by William Sharp Macleay in 1826, it was considered to be the longest stick insect in the world until the discovery of '' Ctenomorpha gargantua''.
It is native to south-east Queensland
Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
and New South Wales
New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
.
Description
Titan stick insects are pale brown-grey in color and can grow up to in body length. Their long, wavy cerci are a unique trait of the species. Males and females can be easily distinguished due to the females being larger and having sharp spines on the legs. Males are able to fly but females are flightless.
Breeding
''A. titan'' breeds during winter/summer. During the mating process, the male connects his abdomen to the lower part of the female's egg compartment. Mating can take up to 40 minutes and is repeated several times. A single female will typically produce 200 to 1000 eggs in her lifetime. However, ''A. titan'' also holds the record for most eggs laid by a single phasmid due to one female laying over 2,050 eggs. The females then flick their eggs to the ground. The eggs look similar to those of the Children's stick insect (''Tropidoderus childrenii'') but they are black-grey with a small white growth. Ants pick them up and eat the growth, and leave the egg in the refinery where they hatch.See also
*List of Australian stick insects and mantids
This is an incomplete list of mantids and Phasmatodea, stick insects found in Australia.
Common species
* Titan stick insect, ''Acrophylla titan''
* Tesselated phasmid, ''Anchiale austrotessulata''
* Large brown mantis, ''Archimantis latistyla''
...
* Spur legged phasmid
* Children's stick insect
*Goliath stick insect
''Eurycnema goliath'', commonly known as the goliath stick insect, or the regal stick insect, is a large species of stick insect in the family Phasmatidae, endemic to Australia and considered one of the largest species of stick insects in the cou ...
References
External links
Phasmid Study Group: Acrophylla titan
{{Taxonbar, from=Q481994 Phasmatidae Insects of Australia Endemic fauna of Australia Insects described in 1827