phyllium Ova

[Bob]

Hey Folks,
Does antone have any Leaf Insect eggs to sell ?

Bob

 

[Arachniphile]

What the heck is a Leaf Insect? Never heard of it...



PS... Another Oregonian...

Be warned!! When our numbers are many.... We're taking over... Resistance is fruitful... lol

 

[Bob]

I'm sure you don't have any but here is a photo....

 

[Arachniphile]

Very cool! Where are they found? Have to be from another country I would think....

If you cross a "Leaf Insect" with a "Stick Bug" do you get whole tree?

 

[Bob]

They are from Malaysia. Not legal to import.

 

[Wade]

Originally posted by Bob
They are from Malaysia. Not legal to import.

As plant feeding exotics, they're illegal to even have, let alone import. The USDA requires a permit for these, and unless you're a curator at a zoo or museum, forget about getting the permit. There are more than likely hbbyist who have them anyway, but they probably won't admit it on a public forum.

It's too bad, they're very interesting. The cammoflage goes so far as to include brown spots and damaged edges, furthur enhancing the "real leaf" appearance. They are apparently a bit more difficult to culture than most phasmids. Very unlikey to become establish in the US at all, let alone become a pest, but oh well...

Wade

 

[Tarantula Lover]

hey

Originally posted by Bob
I'm sure you don't have any but here is a photo....

That is SO camoflouged! Great pic!!

James

 

[Ephesians]

If you cross a "Leaf Insect" with a "Stick Bug" do you get whole tree?

LOL! That cracked me up. VERY cool insect, I know I've seen one before (in a picture of course)...but it's been a lONG time. I forgot how stunning they were.

 

[Advocatus]

I suppose your talking about Phyllium Giganteum?
There are dealers in America who sells them for about $139 for grown ups ... they are rather rare in the US, while in Germany you can buy 12 nymphs for €5 ( about $5 )

 

[Wade]

Originally posted by Advocatus
I suppose your talking about Phyllium Giganteum?
There are dealers in America who sells them for about $139 for grown ups ...

Probably expensive for the same reason illegal drugs are expensive...sellers tend to jack up the price when they're risking getting busted! Unless these dealers are permitted and selling exclusively to permitted institutions, they're definately doing it underground. Of course, if you DO have the permit, you can often get ova or babies of these and other phamids free from other institutions, which makes the $139 price tag seem even more steep!

Of course, I don't know if there's any real enforcement either. Lots of people have exotic phasmids, so who knows.

Wade

 

[Advocatus]

Well apparaently this store specializes in rare and exotic insects.
But still ... illegal or not ... who would buy a leaf insect for $140?

 

[Wade]

Agreed...that's nuts. That much $ for a bug that's gonna live a couple of months at best. Not a good buy!

Is it possible that the store is selling dead, mounted specimens?

Does the store have a website?

Wade

 

[Advocatus]

Nope, no website. I read it in an article somewhere a time ago, and the price just stuck to my head.
I don't remember where I saw it, but it was an article on exotic animals and import issues.
But it may have been an old article ( absolutely NOT unlikely ), and prices may have gone down now.
Or atleast they should have.
But I guess it was an illegal import and the risk of getting caught was too big or something, because a price of $140 in a time like this, when you can buy the most feared arachnid for less than $10 anywhere in the world, is just VERY unlikely, or atleast extremely overpriced.

 

[Bob]

Phylium Giganteum reproduces without a male. The Bioculatum has a better hatch rate with males available.The female will lay about 200 or so ova (eggs) but only 5 to 10% will hatch. The buyer is looking for future eggs.
I had a freind in Malaysia send me some eggs and found out US Customs will not allow there importation. The truth is they will die outside because of the cold but never the less is still the law.

 

[Wade]

Basically, the USDA regulations do not consider the likleyhood of any given species becoming a pest or becoming established. If it eats any part of a plant, even if the plant is dead (as in the case of many beetle larvae), than it cannot be imported. They have made a few exceptions, including common house crickets and hissing cockroaches and maybe a few others, but not much. Hopefully, they will eventually get around to de-regulating some of the more low-risk species like stick and leaf insects, dynastine scarabs and goliath beetles.

Wade

 

[Bob]

Yup....here it is....
TITLE 19--CUSTOMS DUTIES

CHAPTER I--UNITED STATES CUSTOMS SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

PART 12--SPECIAL CLASSES OF MERCHANDISE--Table of Contents

Sec. 12.31 Plant pests.

The importation in a live state of insects which are injurious to
cultivated crops, including vegetables, field crops, bush fruits, and
orchard, forest or shade trees, and of the eggs, pupae, or larvae of such insects, except for scientific purposes under regulations
prescribed by the Secretary of Agriculture, is prohibited.
All packages containing live insects or their eggs, pupae, or larvae arriving from abroad, unless accompanied by a permit issued by the Department of Agriculture, shall be detained and submitted to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Plant Protection and Quarantine.

 

[Advocatus]

Whow .. that really sux .. just as much as over here you have to have a permit to have anykind of reptile, and you're almost certain to get a refusal.