Andamans Stick Bugs!

[BarelyBreathing]

Romaine lettuce isn't exactly a healthy gutload...

[Reptilegal]

They should mainly be fed on rose leaves or bramble if u have acces to those in the winter time aswell then thats even better, just make sure the plants dont contain ANY fertilisers etc. Most species of stick and leaf insect can reproduce via 'parthenogenesis' thry lay fertile eggs WITHOUT the need of a male, but all the offspring will be female as the babies are clones if their mothers. If a male has succesfully mated with the female you will get firls and boys and one advantage of having eggs that have been fertilised by a male is the eggs hatch in half the time than the parthenogenesis ones, so i have macleays spectre stick insects (which feed on eucalyptus leaves) and the eggs 'if fertilised by a male' take around 5 months to hatch, whereas if there eere no male present, the eggs can take upto a year or more to hatch. My female has been mated numerous times and im expecting egfs from her anytime soon.

[Reptilegal]

Originally Posted by BarelyBreathing

Romaine lettuce isn't exactly a healthy gutload...

Correct. If there is ABSOLUTELY none of the other food around,it would keep them ok for a little bit but rose leaves,bramble,oak,eucalyptus (depending on the species) is the BEST!

[Reptilegal]

Originally Posted by Timssticks

Well if you plan on using them as feeders, use organic Romaine Lettuce. If not they thrive on Oak, Hawthorne, Japanese Knot Weed, and bramble (leaves from every plant in the berry family)

I thought at first 'dont feed them romaine lettuce!,its not the most nutricious for ur stick insect' but then i realised ur feeding them to ur dragons and it makes sense cos the stuff the insects thrive on may not be goid for ur dragons. I get it now!