Pest profile

Walkingsticks

Diapheromera femorata (northern walkingstick) and relatives · Phasmida: Diapheromeridae[4]

Walkingsticks look like living twigs and usually go unnoticed. The northern walkingstick feeds on oak and other hardwood leaves, rarely enough to matter.[1][2]

Northern walkingstick, a long, thin, twig-like brown insect with long legs and antennae, on a tree trunk
Northern walkingstick, a long, thin, twig-like brown insect with long legs and antennae, on a tree trunk. (c) Jason E. Farabaugh, some rights reserved (CC BY) — via iNaturalist, CC BY 4.0

How to identify it

  • They're long, slender and twig-like in brown, tan, gray or green, with long legs and antennae.[1]
  • Northern walkingsticks are about 2-2/3 to 4 inches long; antennae are two-thirds the body length.[2][1]
  • Missouri's walkingsticks are wingless, and they sway like branches in a breeze.[1]

Look-alikes

Look-alikeHow to tell them apart
Indian walking stickA pet-trade species from India now established in coastal California after escapes and discarded eggs.[3]

Where it lives

About 30 species live in North America, most in the southernmost states; the northern walkingstick is common in oak-hickory forests and seen in Minnesota from late July through August.[1][2]

US map: public records from 35 states since 1990 (GBIF).

Biology and life cycle

They overwinter as eggs that females drop one by one into leaf litter in late summer and fall.[1]

Eggs hatch in spring and the young climb into the trees; adults die at freezing.[1]

Adults are mostly nocturnal, feeding at night and resting by day.[1]

Damage and signs

  • They chew leaves of oaks, hazelnut, locusts, walnut and cherry; feeding is usually not severe.[1][2]
  • Occasional population peaks can defoliate trees, which usually recover unless it repeats or they're stressed.[1]

Health risk

Neither source describes any risk to people; they're noticed mostly when they wander onto buildings or sidewalks.[1][2]

Control

Prevention

No control is needed for occasional walkingsticks; trees normally recover even from rare defoliation.[1]

If you keep Indian walking sticks as pets, bag cage debris, freeze it, then trash it so eggs don't escape.[3]

Common questions

Are walkingsticks harmful?
Not to people, and their leaf feeding is usually not severe.[2][1]
Why is a walking stick insect in California?
Indian walking sticks escaped from captivity or were spread through discarded eggs and now live in coastal California.[3]

Sources

  1. Missouri Department of Conservation, “Walkingsticks (Stick Insects) field guide.” mdc.mo.gov/node/219675 (accessed 2026-10-06)
  2. University of Minnesota Extension, “Walkingstick (What insect is this?).” apps.extension.umn.edu/garden/diagnose/insect/general-curiosity-insects/beetles/large/walkingstick.html (accessed 2026-10-06)
  3. University of California Statewide IPM Program, “Pest Notes: Indian Walking Stick (Publication 74157).” ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn74157.html (accessed 2026-10-06)
  4. iNaturalist, “Diapheromera femorata taxon page (order and family).” www.inaturalist.org/taxa/84286 (accessed 2026-10-06)

Updated 2026-10-14. Built from sourced records. Spot an error? Tell us.