EDUCATION

LIVE INSECTS FOR SCHOOLS

Minibeast Wildlife provides live insects to schools to keep in the classroom!

Live insects for schools!

We visit schools to deliver educational sessions on the Australian invertebrate wildlife.  If you are interested in more than a visit from Minibeast Wildlife and would like to keep live insects and other minibeasts at your school then we can help you. We have a great range of insects and other invertebrates that are easy to keep and ideal for the classroom. The various options we have enable teachers to choose species which best suit their needs. Some species are ideal for observing within enclosures, others are great for handling, some live for a long time, and others are relatively short-lived but ideal to demonstrate life-cycles.

Great invertebrates for handling

crowned-stick-insect

Crowned Stick Insect

A hardy species of stick insect that feeds on gum leaves. They spend most of their time motionless and feed at night. 

spiny-leaf-insect

Spiny Leaf Insect​

This amazing species also feeds on gum leaves and looks like a dried leaf or piece of curled bark. Our most popular pet species. 

Garden Snails

There’s a lot to learn from Garden Snails. Easy to keep and check out our Snail Racing Kit and calculate the speed your snails get to!

Great insects for studying life-cycles

mallee-markling-beetles

Mallee Darkling Beetles

Easy to keep and easy to see the different life-stages; larva, pupa and adult. Watch them develop in the classroom.

demestid-beetle-hide-beetle

Hide Beetles

See the life-stages and also use them as museums do – to clean skeletons! These are the beetles used by taxidermists.

orchard-butterfly-caterpillar

Orchard butterfly

These caterpillars feed on citrus leaves so they are easy to feed. From caterpillars to butterflies around 4 weeks.

Great invertebrates for visual observation

giant-banded-huntsman

Huntsman spiders

We have several species available. Large impressive (harmless) spiders. They often sit on the walls of enclosures and are fascinating to watch catching crickets.

green-garden-mantis

Praying mantids

We breed multiple species of mantids seasonally. These are captivating to watch and very charismatic. Check out the Bug Shop to see what we have. 

semi-social-pygmy-tarantula

Pygmy Tarantula

These little tarantulas make silk labyrinths in their enclosures and burrow beneath the surface. They hunt live insects and love crickets – great to observe and study. 

If you need help​

If you have any questions, feel free to contact us via email. We can answer your questions and come up with the most suitable animals for your purposes. We have many years of experience helping teachers set-up and maintain minibeasts in their classroom and can provide plenty of valuable advice.

Our book ‘Bugs Alive – A Guide to Keeping Australian Invertebrates‘ is a great resource for teachers. It provides easy to follow information on how to keep a wide range of insects, spiders and other minibeasts, as well as details on how to create displays, handle and solve any problems you may encounter.

What do teachers say?