Phasma marosense "Bantimurung"

(by Bruno Kneubuehler)

General Notes

• first sucessful culture of this species by Sigetake Suzuki (Japan)
• 2011 - Frank Hennemann (Germany) is examining this species taxonomically at the moment
• 2011 - frist successful culture in Europe by Bruno Kneubuehler (Switzerland)
• this species has been identified as Ph. marosense by Frank Hennemann

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Origin

• Bantimurung (South-Sulawesi)

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Females

• rather sturdy and thick phasmids
• 15 - 16 cm long
• light brown body
• brown to greenish-brown legs
• numerous small, light-green tubercles on the mesothorax (especially dorsally)
• 2 greenish small tubercles between the eyes (most probably ocelli)
• well developed wings
• membranous part of hind wings is black with many light-orange dots
• underside of fore wings is blue
• underside of the outer margin of the hindwings is blue and purple
• antennae about half of the length of the forelegs
• legs rather short
• long, projecting cerci
• strongly developed subgenital plate

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Males

• more gracile than the females
• 10.5 - 11 cm long
• brown body with greenish-brown areas
• green-brown legs
• 3 strongly developed ocelli between the eyes
• some small tubercles on the mesothorax (especially dorsally)
• legs with many small, black-tiped spines
• long, well developed wings
• membranous part of hindwings black with many translucent, orange dots
• underside of the outer margin of the hind wings is purple
• undersides of fore and hind wings of the males are not blue
• lateral edge of forewings almost white
• ventral body greenish-brown, ventral Metathorax strongly green
• strongly developed, projecting cerci

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Nymphs

• rather big and sturdy nymphs
• about 25 mm long (L1)
• short, brown antennae
• green-brown body
• mid and hind legs banded green and brown
• differentiation between males and females is already in L1 possible

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Eggs

• 5 x 4 mm
• usually black
• few eggs have a more or less pronounced whitish coloration
• microphylar plate is very long and streches almost around the whole egg
• very shiny
• in most eggs, the capitulum is clearly stalked and bowl-shaped
• microphylar pore is almost at the rear egg pole
• eggs get mouldy easily, but they still hatch

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Food Plants

• Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus) and Guava (Psidium guajava) leaves are being eaten in the wild
• freshly hatched nymphs feed on bramble (Rubus sp.), oak (Quercus sp.), beech (Fagus sylvaticus) and Salal (Gaulteria shallon)
• older nymphs and adults feed easily on bramble

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Behaviour

• young nymphs are very calm
• older nymphs and especially adult males and females can behave very frantically when feeling threatened (like when being touched)
• adult males, sometimes also females, run around frantically with widly open wings - probably to shy off or bewilder predators
• males can fly for a short distance, the flight is rather clumsy
• females can not fly
• males will be adult after about 3 -3.5 months (at 20 - 23°C), females after about 3.5 - 4 months
• females start laying eggs after about 3 weeks
• eggs are flinged away and drop down
• about 20 - 25 eggs per week and female
• matings can be observed frequently and do not last for long

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Breeding Notes

• an easy to keep and interesting species
• incubation with the HH-incubation method (on slightly damp sand) yields good hatching ratios
• spread some dry moss over the eggs, this will make it much easier for the nymphs to hatch properly
• incubation time (at room temperature) is yet unknown, probably 3 - 4 months
• hatching ratio was high (50+ %)
• as the freshly hatched nymphs are already quite big, therefore the incubation container should be big enough
• keep the nymphs in a cage with good ventilation
• take care that the humidity does not drop too low
• a constantly wet paper towel on the floor of the cage helps raising humidity
• nymphs can be kept in a Faunabox (or similar cages)
• move nymphs to a bigger cage as they grow bigger
• I have never sprayed nymphs or adults with water
• make shure that nymphs, which are about to undergo their adult moult, do not find places in the cage which would not offer them enough space beneath to moult successfully