Australian
Insect Farm
Established
1986
Suppliers
and Breeders of Insects
Delivering World-Wide
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About
Us
The AIF Story |
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Insect
Pets
Cockroaches, Stick Insects, Beetles, Grubs |
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Insects
in the Classroom
Teacher's page |
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Catalogue
and How to Order
Insect Kits, Prices and Freight |
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Environmental
and Agricultural
Consultation Services |
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Insect
Wranglers
Insect Supplies And Wrangler Service |
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Dioramas
Insect Diversity Displays |
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Newsletters
All the news from the AIF |
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Contact
Us
For all your insect enquiries |
| Insects Make Great Pets |
| At the Australian Insect Farm we breed and research insects
for many uses including Insects for Pets,
especially those suitable for children.
The insects we supply for pet use are easily maintained and safe for handling. We specialise in insects ideal for classroom and educational use. All insects come with reliable fact sheets with easy directions on housing, feeding and maintenance. Once you have purchased your insect kit we are only a phone call away for any further advice.
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| Insects are Easy and Fun to Keep |
| Giant Burrowing Cockroach Kits Giant Litter Bugs (Macropanesthia rhinoceros) |
| Here at the AIF we call these buts Giant Litter Bugs because of thier diet of dried leaf litter. |
| Litter Bugs are amazing insects with their army tank like appearance.
They are known to live for 7 to 10 years and can grow to a size that
fills the palm of an adult hand.
Female Litter Bugs do not lay eggs, they bare live young and up to 30 in a clutch. They are easy to handle and do not bite. As your Litter Bugs grow they will become quite responsive to your feeding routine and gentle handling. They are the heaviest cockroach species in the world! Giant Litter Bugs are available all year. With very little maintenance required, Litter Bugs are easy to keep as pets.
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| Adult Beetle Kits |
| Rhinoceros (Elephant) Beetles (Xylotrupes gideon) |
| Rhinoceros beetles are well known for their hissing noise and
the males for their spectacular horn like structure. Female Rhinos
lack any horn structure and are usually smaller than the males who
grow up to 7 cm in length.
From the eggs, the complete life history can be studied from the egg (ova) - grub(larva) - pupa - and adult again to continue breeding. Our instruction sheet will take you through this easy and amazingly low maintenance process. Rhinoceros Beetle Kits are available from around December to March Rhinoceros Beetles are easy to breed. |
| Flower Beetles (Scarabs) |
| These beetles are smaller in size than Rhinoceros Beetles but
instead they have brilliant colours from lime green to burnt brown
and black. Flower Beetles are easy to feed. As an adult they generally
live for around 8 to 10 weeks. They also mate during this time and
the females lay many eggs.
Like the Rhinoceros Beetles, the complete life history can be viewed. It's great fun to raise your own beetle grubs through to having the adults emerge in summer. They also mate during this time and the females lay many eggs. With good breeding, your number of insects increase each year. Flower Scarab Beetle kits are available from around January to March.
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| Caramel Beetles (Scarabs) |
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As the name suggest, Caramel beetles have a lovely caramel colour. They are easy to feed and can live up to 10 - 12 weeks as an adult beetle. During their adult stage they will mate and the females will produce eggs. Caramel beetles are available as adult beetles from April to June, grubs are also available from July through to December |
| Hairy Beetles |
Hairy Beetles are a new addition to our Beetle Insect Kits.
Their black bodies are actually adorned in rows of bright orange or white hair! Both male and female Hairy Beetles have hair and they are a good size of around 3 to 4 cm in length. Like our other beetle kits, Hairy Beetles are easy to maintain. Adults live for around 8 to 10 weeks and our information sheet will guide you through all the steps for housing, feeding and breeding. Hairy Beetles are usually available from December to March. |
| Beetle Grub Kits - Grow Your Own Beetles! |
| This is an interesting way to learn an insect life cycle. These
kits come with all instructions on rearing to adult and then onto
breeding your own continual cycle of insects.
Caramel beetle grub kits are availabe for July to December. Beetle grubs are clean to touch and do not smell. They are great fun to hold.
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| Stick Insects |
| Spiny Leaf Stick Insects (Extatasoma tiaratum) |
| The Spiny Leaf Insect is quite bizarre in its appearance but
is actually very docile and completely harmless. They can come in
different colours from green to brown with some a combination of both
colours.
They usually live for around 10 months in the tropics and up to 18 months in colder climates. When fully grown they will mate with the females producing large numbers of eggs. From these eggs it is possible to breed the Spiny Leaf Insects. Our instruction sheet comes with a list of suggested plants to use, chosen
Spiny Leaf Insect Kits are usually available all year Spiny Leaf Insects are easy to breed.
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| Giant Walking Sticks ( Acrophylla
wuelfingi)
Called the Giant because these stick insects can reach a length of up to 30 cm. Having a typical stick - like appearance they are easy to handle. Females are more robust than the skinny shorter males. They live for around 10 months in the tropics with breeding
possible from eggs produced. Giant Walking Sticks feed on the leaves of Eucalyptus, Bramble and many other common garden plants. A list of suggested plants is detailed on the information sheet.
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| Ten -Inch Stick ( Ctenamorphodes
briareus)
A long slender stick insect the Ten-Inch Stick resembles the smaller twigs on the trees. Males are smaller in overall size than that of the robust females. Ten-Inch sticks eat a variety of plants found in the backyard, making them easy to feed. Like all kits, information is supplied. Once you recieve your kit, you will find a plant in your backyard suitable to use.
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| To order your insect kit go to the catalogue or contact us. |
Litter Bugs are actually native bush cockroaches but are unlike
any household cocky. They have NO wings and like other bush cockroaches,
Litter Bugs are totally clean and disease free.
Rhinoceros beetles are easy to maintain. Adult insects live for
around 8 - 12 weeks. During this time they mate continually, with
females producing many eggs.
Beetle Grub kits are available for Rhinoceros , Flower Beetles and
Hairy Beetles during the winter months.
from a variety of native and exotic plants. It is necessary for
you to have a food supply available. Spiny Leaf Insects will feed
on many common garden plants such as Eucalyptus, Rose bushes, Brambles
and Guava, with many others also being suitable.
