Laurie Hayes had never seen a stick insect before he found "The Cardinal" in the front yard of his Narellan home last Monday.

Mr Hayes's wife Davidia named the stick insect which they are assuming is a male but if their new pet is found to be female, it will take the name from one of Mrs Hayes's favourite shows on the ABC, The Vicar of Dibley.

"I was cutting roses for my wife and I thought my rose bush was dying," he said.

"I saw some magpies in the jacaranda eyeing him...so I cut the branch off the rose bush and kept him in a baby's bath."

He then transferred the 30-centimetre-long insect to his aviary in the backyard, where it shares a dirt floor and lush plants with a few birds and some fish.

Mr Hayes said The Cardinal was"more than happy" in its new environment.

A quick search on the internet informed Mr Hayes that stick insects liked gumleaves so he picked some from a nearby tree.

"I've got a ready supply of gumleaves," he said.

Mr Hayes said he was a bit unsure about the stick insect at first.

"I was a bit wary but now he seems most contented," he said.

"He's a friendly little fella."

Entomologist Stephen Fellenberg specialises in phasmids the scientific name for stick insects and said the best way to tell a female from a male was its larger abdomen and whether it laid eggs, which looked like seeds.

There are about 150 different types of stick insects in Australia and the most common one, like The Cardinal, is found along the eastern coast of Australia, right down to Tasmania.

Mr Fellenberg said the word "phasmid" meant ghost as the insects were so hard to find.

"They're so well camouflaged and hard to see," he said.

"When it's windy, you'll find them down low in vegetation around the home."

They have a life expectancy of two years, are easy to maintain and make good pets.

"They're harmless. When they aren't used to being handled, they play dead," Mr Fellenberg said.

"If you play music, they will sway to the vibration like they would sway in the breeze."

Mr Fellenberg will hold a meeting on endangered stick insects on April 19. Details: 0419696691