Nature's greatest illusionist - our printable stick insect mask celebrates one of the most extraordinary camouflage specialists in the insect world! The stick insect (or walking stick) has evolved to look so convincingly like a twig that even experienced naturalists walk right past them. Perfect for minibeasts school plays, camouflage and adaptation classroom projects, World Book Day, birthday parties, and mysteriously invisible imaginative play.

The stick insect is one of the most popular classroom pets in British primary schools - gentle, fascinating and requiring minimal care, they introduce children to insect biology in the most hands-on way possible. A mask guaranteed to spark questions. Every mask comes with a full colour version AND a black and white line art version for colouring in.

5 Interesting Facts About Stick Insects!

The Chan's megastick of Borneo is the world's longest insect - females can reach 35.7cm in body length with legs extended, making them longer than a ruler and genuinely startling to encounter.
Many stick insect species reproduce by parthenogenesis - females can produce fertile eggs without mating, and the offspring are genetic clones of the mother. Some species have no males at all.
They can regenerate lost limbs - if a leg is lost during a moult or to a predator, a new one grows back at the next moult, though it may be slightly shorter than the original.
Stick insects have an extraordinary defence - beyond camouflage, many species can also release foul-smelling chemicals, flash bright warning colours from hidden hindwings, or sway like a twig in a breeze to complete the illusion.
Their eggs look like plant seeds and are often collected and buried by ants - this accidental dispersal by ants (called myrmecochory) spreads the eggs to new areas, benefiting the stick insect species.

Printable Stick Insect Mask

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