# New to the forum and saying hi



## Guest_duncan27_* (Jun 23, 2008)

hello everyone.

Been an avid critter watcher since I was a child. Never got in to all the scientific names and such as I was just interested in finding what I had in the backyard, put it in a nice set up and enjoy watching them.

Mantids were always a nice treat for me and I have had a couple over the years... Carolina and/or chinese I am guessing. Easy to care for and fun to have around.

Found this forum because I have gotten my zest back for bugs as I have been sharing my interest with my 3 yr old who just loves bugs. At the moment I have 2 chinese mantids, 1 bought at an expo the other caught in my backyard, probably from a batch of mantids that I put in the backyard last summer. Other critters I, I mean my son  , has are some millipedes, centipedes, giant water bugs, diving beetles, newts and a sow bug killer (spider). Most where found in the backyard or nearby mountains.

After a little more practice with my chinese mantids I want to see if I can breed them, and move on to an orchid mantid or something that is more colorful and "different". Any thoughts and suggestions on what species to move up to next for me would be great. I take good care of whatever I keep as long as I know what they need.


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## duncan27 (Jun 23, 2008)

sorry forgot to mention that I live in southern california, about 30 min south of Los Angeles


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## Sparky (Jun 23, 2008)

Hey, welcome to the forums. It's funny how adults like to show off their kids. You mentioned him twice :lol: Sooner or later he'll hit 16 then we're not so great anymore.

Haha, just kidding

Anyways, welcome to the forum.


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## duncan27 (Jun 23, 2008)

yeah kids are like bugs, they are "cute" and fun to watch when they are small. And I assume that if your mantids and other bugs got as big as a teenager and had an attitude to match, they would lose their appeal


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## hibiscusmile (Jun 23, 2008)

Hello, and welcome duncan! from OHIO! Sparky we love u boy! :lol:


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## duncan27 (Jun 24, 2008)

figured since this is the intro thread I might as well introduce some of my critters too.

My Mantids. Bought one at the LA Bug Expo for my son (3 yrs old). He loves it. Found a second one in my backyard 2 weeks afterwards. Same species (generic chinese mantid sold at garden stores) and about the same age.












unfortunately he got a little freaked out when I tried to put him back in his new cage after adding some green moss. he much rather stay on the lawn chair I guess











My sow bug killer (foundin the yard). It just caught a baby mouse spider ( Scotophaeus blackwalli) that I threw in after finding it running across my floor.
















My T Torosas (newts) - found an egg case and 4 out of 10 survived their first year. It has been really cool watching them metamorph from tadpoles with gills to newts. They are about 3 inches long and I keep them in a make shift pond in the backyard.


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## duncan27 (Jun 24, 2008)

My "yard" Millipedes Polydesmid Oxidus gracilis. I find these all the time out here. Found about 10 of them under a rock in the yard. Grabbed some dirt to put in their cage and ended up with a little stow away that you can see in the right side. Not sure what type of milli it is.





















Here is my narceua americanus (got him at the LA Bug Expo in May). Housed with isopods, couple earwigs (that layed eggs ), 2 "yard" millipedes and 2 Centipedes (1/4 - 1/2 inch to help eat any mites and critters that are unwanted)











Giant Water Bug - found the daddy with eggs that where hatching (barely 1/4 in long). Pretty neat as the babies were that glow in the dark green when they hatched and made him stick out among the twigs and debri in the water. Within a couple hours they had turned a dark brown. You can see one that is still a lightish color in the second pic. 14 hatched, 6 when I caught him, 4 on the way home and the other 4 the next day. Unfortunately they started canibalizing each other before I could get them in big enough containers and seperate them so now I have 3 after giving away 2 others. They have molted 2 time in a month and are about 3/4 inch long, fast growers.


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## pedro92 (Jun 26, 2008)

There are some Creepy crawlers there. Welcome from the capital of MONTANA!


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## chrisboy101 (Jun 29, 2008)

hi and welcome. i wouldnt recomend moving up to an orchid from chinese that fast lol try ghost. thats an intersting and hardy sp.


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