How to: Look After Inverts
Giant African land snail
An at home habitat?
Giant African land snails can live together in the same enclosure - this should be a glass fish tank or large storage box with holes, no smaller than 30cm and kept at room temperature. Fill with a deep layer of substrate and plenty of sphagnum moss to keep it damp.
Snails love to climb! Tree branches from the outdoors are ideal decorations for your enclosure - ensure you soak them in boiling water to remove any foreign bacteria before adding them to the enclosure.
Spray your snail with water twice a day to keep it damp.
What should we feed it?
Your snail should be fed every couple of days on a diet of appropriate vegetables. They should have constant access to cuttlefish bone which provides calcium for healthy shell growth.
Fun Fact!
A giant African land snail can lift more than ten times its weight. If it were human, that
would equate to someone lifting almost 240 stones!
Chilean rose tarantula!
An at home habitat?
Your tarantula should be kept alone in a faunarium, as it will often try to eat other members of the same species. Place a heat mat to the side of the tank at one end and provide a deep layer of soil for your tarantula to burrow. Provide a hide - a plastic flower pot cut in half is ideal. The tarantula will need a shallow water dish for freshwater.
What should we feed it?
Your tarantula should be fed once a week on a diet of hoppers and crickets (around half the length of its body in size).
Fun Fact!
Tarantulas are typically incredibly shy - they are more likely to run away and hide than become aggressive or actively approach you!
Indian stick insect
An at home habitat?
A number of Indian stick insects can be housed together. An ideal enclosure would be
30cm high with a temperature between 21-24ºC. Stick insects love to climb! Tree
branches can be used to enrich the enclosure. Always soak the sticks in boiling water to
remove any bacteria before adding them to the enclosure.
What should we feed it?
Your stick insects should be fed once a week on a diet of bramble, ivy, privet, rose or
raspberry leaves. It is important that the leaves have no pesticides on them. All the
leaves must be washed with fresh water before placing them in the stick insect
enclosure.
Fun Fact!
If a young stick insect loses a leg, it is sometimes able to grow a new leg. This process is called regeneration