Podacanthus typhon Gray, 1833

Common Name:

Pink-winged Phasma

Identification:

Fine pink colour which tinges the hyaline wings; the costal area is of a pale green, with the base pink; the tegmina are of a pale green, very much ridged in the centre, and darker in colour than the other parts; the legs are reddish pink, rather short; the anterior have elevated lines, while the four posterior ones are spined beneath; the mesothorax is very short, narrow before, and covered with numerous tubercles; the body long, yellowish at the base and pink at the tip, but the hypopygium or last ventral segment is green, with two leaflets at the tip, which are pinkish green; the head with three distinct stemmata. (from Gray, 1833)

See also a rather nice picture at the Australian Museum web site.

Length:
Coloring:

male and female volant

Campbell & Hadlington, 1967
Note parental placement of eggs. Note appearance of eggs. Note any common variations.

Habitat:

arborial. Canopy, mid, under, etc.

Note typical vegetation, e.g. tropical rainforest, temperate rainforest, grasslands, alpine, etc.

Similar Species:

Rearing Notes:

Note if this species has ever been reared. Note any suggestions for successful rearing.

For a stick insect with body length 110mm, to keep 2 adult females, you need a cage at least 500mm high, 250mm deep and 250mm wide.

Range:

SE coastal, Murray-Darling basin, NSW.

Status:

It is not known if this species is endangered, as there is insufficient sighting history.

References

Balderson, J., Rentz, D.C.F. and Roach, A.M.E. (1998). in Houston, W.K.K. & Wells, A. (1998) (eds) Zoological Catalogue of Australia. Vol. 23. Archaeognatha, Zygentoma, Blattodea, Isoptera, Mantodea, Dermaptera, Phasmatodea, Embioptera, Zoraptera. Melbourne: CSIRO Publishing, Australia (ISBN 0643 06035 9). pp. 347 - 376.
Bedford, G.O. & Chinnick, L.J. (1966). Conspicuous displays in two species of Australian stick insects. Anim. Behav., 14: 518-521
Bedford, G.O. (1968). Notes on the biology of some Australian stick insects (Phasmatodea), Journal of the Australian Entomological Society, 7: 81-82
Bedford, G.O. (1978). Biology and ecology of the Phasmatodea. Ann. Rev. Entomol. 23: 125-149
Campbell, K. G., Hadlington, P., 1967. The biology of the three species of phasmatids which occur in plague numbers in forests of south eastern Australia. Forestry Commission NSW Res. Note No. 20, 38 pp.
Clark, J.T. (1976). The eggs of stick insects (Phasmida): a review with descriptions of the eggs of eleven species. Syst. Ent. 1: 95-105.
Gray, G.R. (1833). The Entomology of Australia in a Series of Monographs. Part 1. The monograph of the genus Phasma. London: Longman & Co. 28 pp. 8 pls
Gray, G.R. (1835). ‘Synopsis of the Species of Insects Belonging to the Family of Phasmidae.’ 48pp. (Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, Green and Longman: London.)
Key, K.H.L. (1970). Phasmatodea (Stick-insects). pp. 394-404 in CSIRO (ed.) The Insects of Australia. A textbook for students and research workers. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, Vol. 1, 1st Edn.
Kirby, W.F. (1904). A Synonymic Catalogue of Orthoptera. 8vo. Vol. 1. Orthoptera, Euplexoptera, Cursoria, et Gressoria (Forficulidæ, Hemimeridæ, Blattidæ, Mantidæ, Phasmidæ). London: Longmans & Co. x 501 pp.
Musgrave, A. (1922). Stick and Leaf Insects, Australian Museum Magazine, October, 1922, pp. 171-181
Rainbow, W.J. (1897). Catalogue of the described Phasmidae of Australia. Records of the Australian Museum, 3(2), 37-44. [Note that he made a mistake re Extatosoma popa and E. tiaratum according to Gurney, A.B. (1947). Notes on some remarkable Australasian walkingsticks, including a synopsis of the Genus Extatosoma (Orthoptera: Phasmatidae). Annals of the Entomological Society of America. 40(3): 373-396. .]
Tepper, J.G.O. (1902). List of the Described Genera and Species of the Australian and Polynesian Phasmidæ (Spectre-Insects). Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia, 26: 278-287.
Vickery, V.R. (1983). Catalogue of Australian stick insects (Phasmida, Phasmatodea, Phasmatoptera, or Cheleutoptera). CSIRO Australian Division of Entomology Technical Paper, No. 20, 15 pp.
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Synonyms:

Podacanthus unicolor Charpentier, 1845