Sub Family: Lonchodinae

Foodplant in captivity: I use a mix of bramble, oak and Pyracantha.  

Humidity requirements: Not particularly fussy - I keep Neohirasea maerens in a glass tank that has a plastic mesh lid, and lightly spray every other evening, or whenever I remember.

Comment: This is quite an easy species to rear.  

The adult males are approximately 7-8 cm in length, whereas the adult females are a little larger at ~9cm.  Both sexes are similar-looking, having tiny black spikes along the upper (dorsal) side of their body.  However, the body of the females is a little wider and slightly flatter than that of the males, and lacks the thick black stripe that runs down the length of the male's dorsum.

Defence tactics:  The spines are not sharp or large enough to pierce human skin, though they might cause a little pain if the insect is roughly handled.  I suppose that the spines and also the male's stripe are used more to induce trepidation than to effectively cause any physical harm to predators.  Some people have also noticed that Neohirasea maerens releases an odd odour when disturbed (apparently like peanut butter).  

In the event of danger this species tends to just run very fast (making cleaning out of the tanks quite difficult - as soon as the lid is removed, the insects try to run everywhere!)

align=adult female ↑

adult male ↑

 nymph ↑