Cryptophyllium bollensi "Phuoc Binh"

(by Bruno Kneubuehler)

General Informations

• provenience: Phuoc Binh NP, Vietnam
• Phước Bình National Park is a national park in the commune of Phước Bình, Bác Ái District, Ninh Thuận Province. It is located 62 km north-west from Phan Rang town, the capital of Ninh Thuận Province
• ID and taxonomic evaluation by Joachim Bresseel (BE)
• F1 CB culture in 2015 by Tim Bollens (Belgium)
• further taxonomical informations ➤ Phasmida Species Files
• this is a pure culture, and all serious breeders are kindly requested to avoid mixing this culture with similar populations from a different provenience / location. When spreading this culture to other breeders, then always use the full name with provenience
• this culture is number CLP 683   (Online Phasma Culture List)

Females

• typical for Phyllium
• body length ≈ 8 cm
• females coloration is variable across individuals
• some females are greenish, while others are yellow

Males

• typical for Phyllium
• body length ≈ 6 cm
• green

Nymphs

• freshly hatched nymphs are dark brown
• on how to distinguish between male and female nymphs

Eggs

• ≈ 4 x 2.5 mm

Food Plants

• bramble (Rubus spp.)
  well accepted by nymphs and adults
• hazelnut (Corylus avellana)
  well accepted by nymphs and adults
• beech (Fagus sylvatica)
  well accepted by nymphs and adults
• other possible food plants (not tested though): 
  Salal (Gaultheria shallon)
  oak (Quercus spp.)

Breeding, Behaviour

• easy to breed
• active mainly during the night
• they feign death when touched
• females fling the eggs away with a swift swing of their abdomen
• eggs just drop to the ground
• about 10 eggs per female and week
• incubation (Cup-Incubation-method, on medium damp vermiculite) about 4.5 months at 20 - 24 °C
• it is quite common that some nymphs will hatch weeks or even months after the first nymphs - from the very same batch of eggs
• eggs can be covered with vermiculite (about 5 - 10 mm high), which makes it easier for the nymphs to hatch without getting stuck in the eggs shell
• nymphs hatch during daytime (around noon), as all Phyllium nymphs do
• a humidity of about 65 - 75 % rH seems to be good enough for nymphs
• keep adults at a higher humidity of around 80% rH
• one can spray them regularly with chlorine-free water, but allow the water to dry up before spraying again
• ventilator which provides regular air movement is very much recommended
• provide a cage of about 40 x 30 x 30 (cm, L x B x H) for 2 adult couples
• males will be adult after about 5 months (at 20 - 24°C), females after 6+ months
• the Free-Standing-Setup is very much recommened to get freshly hatched nymphs starting to feed. Once the nymphs are in L3, the Free-Standing-Setup is no more necessary