Make a Wētā House

Wētā are very special and ancient native insects. All wētā are big but the tusked wētā is one of the heaviest insects in the world and the cave wētā has enormously long legs and feelers.

Lots of different species of wētā used to roam the forest floor eating seeds. They were the insect version of mice. But now our forests are home to introduced rats and mice and they eat wētā.

Most wētāpunga (giant wētā) have been exterminated on the mainland and there are much fewer common tree wētā. You can help the wētā in your garden or school grounds by making them safe homes in pieces of bamboo.

You will need:

A bamboo stick
A saw
Strong string
A caregiver or adult to help you

What to do

Find a length of bamboo with a hole down the middle that is between 12mm and 18mm wide. Saw it into short pieces, cutting above each joint.

Each length will make a wētā house. With the hole facing down and the solid joint facing up, tie each house to a tree trunk or post.