Weta Report

This is a piece of writing that we did for our mini beast topic .

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Weta Report

Weta are insects, they are native to NZ and they live in specific places in the North and South Island.They can live in hot and cold weather. Did you know some of the tusk Weta live on the ground. At night time they leave their resting place to move around.

Weta like to eat fruit,leaves,flowers. Weta normally eat lichens.The ground and tusk Weta are carnivores and they eat worms and snails the other Weta are herbivores or omnivores. Weta only eat at night because it could be safer to hunt when danger can’t see them.The tree and giant Wētā eat mostly lichens, leaves, flowers, seed-heads, and fruit.

Weta lay eggs at night and normally their eggs stay in the ground for a year. They mate in the spring and summer. Over all they lay 300 eggs in a lifetime. The males have to protect their females by fighting for her.

Tree Wētā are social creatures. A gallery(group) can have a number of young Wētā and females but only one male. The males defend their gallery from other males. When threatened, Wētā wave their spiky hind legs to frighten and scratch invaders and predators. They also hiss and bite. Female tree Wētā can look threatening too. They have an ovipositor for laying eggs, but it looks like a very large stinger!

Tree Wetas hide during the day in holes in hollow tree branches many native birds like kiwi, robin and tomtit eat Wetas also hedgehogs, stoats, possums, mice and rats like Weta.  To protect themselves when attacked they raise their spiny back legs above their bodies to look large and prickly. Wētā are threatened by introduced predators and habitat loss. We can help Weta by moving them to save places to live. We can help protect all Wētā species by trapping rats in our backyards

Summery: Tree wetas hide during the day in holes in hollow tree branches and come out at night to eat. Many native birds and mammals eat wetas. To protect themselves when attacked they  raise their spiny back legs above their bodies to look large and prickly and hiss and bite. A gallery can have a number of young wētā and females but only one male. Over all they lay 300 eggs in a lifetime. The tree and giant wētā eat mostly lichens, leaves, flowers, seed-heads, and fruit.  At night time they leave their resting place to move around.

I learnt that weta have been around since the dinosaurs. 

By James