Vietnamese Walking Sticks
Medauroidea extradentata
- Habitat: sub-tropical dry and wet forests
- Range: endemic to Vietnam
- Natural Diet: leaves of vegetation they inhabit, in Vietnam.
- Status in the Wild: Not evaluated
These stick insects are found in the tropical rainforest habitats in Vietnam (photo courtesy: Wikimedia Commons)
Fun Facts
- Vietnamese walking sticks are only found in Vietnam
- They are approximately 4 to 5 inches long.
- They are brownish-black in color and look like twigs, which help them to camouflage from their predators
- Their mouthparts are specially designed so that they can efficiently chew plant material
- These walking sticks are asexual. They lay hundereds of their eggs on the forest floor of their habitat
- They have short life spans of about 5 to 6 months.
Conservation Threats
- The major threats are habitat destruction, some agricultural practices, and logging trees for firewood.
- Use of pesticides and insecticides also has a detrimental influence on their wild numbers
