Anchiale Austrotessulata

Origin -
South side of Australia

Size -
Males 8-9cm, females 13-17cm

Life span -
Around 12 months

Eggs -
3mm black shiny, time 3-5 months, hatch rate high

Colour -
a mottled light to dark brown, males sometimes green, black and white checked wings.

Temperature -
25c

Humidity -
medium-high 70+%

Food plants -
eucalyptus

Eggs hatching -
These will not hatch when dry and tend to wait for humidity, so keeping on damp sand works well. At 25c they won’t take long to hatch.

Keeping-
A mesh cage is best for these. With kitchen roll on the bottom. But a damp bottom is always needed. start with a medium sized cage and spray once in the evenings. They settle down very quickly and start to feed. They are a fast growing species and will be adult in within 6 months, males even quicker. Do not overcrowd them as they will knock off molting ones. I find them an active species, that moves around a lot. They also eat a huge amount of food. After a couple of moults move them to a large cage, and keep nymphs separate from adults.

Breeding -
Males can pester the females before they are adult. So may need separating until the females turn adult. They flick the eggs around the cage. I find it’s best to collect them. they are a shiny black colour and about 3mm long.