Recent content by grob

Hello! Been out of mantids for a while, but, hmm, maybe time to get back. Trying an ant colony, Camponotus, that's a whole other can of worms. And that's an idiom, not raising worms.

No problem! Now that you know what to look for you will see them all over. They seem fairly common, I've found them in four locations, one being a very unnatural, landscaped entrance to a "gated community".

Nice catch! I would split them up into their own cages. That way you can keep track of who eats what, and make sure one doesn't eat the other one. Here's what I keep my two in: The left is a 32oz plastic storage container from the dollar store. In the wild I think Gonatista spend most, if...

Hi Nate, welcome! I live just a few miles North of you in Plantation. I'd be glad to give you some forth instar Tenodera sinensis (the "Chinese mantis" commonly found in the US) - I have too many. I haven't been at it very long but I'd be glad to show you my setup if you are interested. --rob

I can't find a good collembola key Compare with these springtails in genus Isotoma: http://bugguide.net/index.php?q=search&keys=isotoma&search=Search

There are lots of species of springtails, I think 650 in the US. Looks like from Isotomadae? The forked furca and few-segmented antennae are a giveaway, and they often show up in huge numbers in the spring. I'm looking for a good internet key, with pictures. Here's some pictures...

They look like springtails.

Nice colours!

Super cool, great color!

My daughter found this for me last night, maybe you've seen it: http://www.kulfoto.com/animals-pictures/18157/white-mantis-holding-two-flies

Ugh, bulleting boards can be exhausting. I'm not talking about reintroduction of Phyllocrania paradoxa. Since it's spread over a huge continent, I don't think that's a problem. I'm asking about the history of Phyllocrania in captivity. Did anyone write anything down? When did people start...

Oh, I see. It's not going to help. It's just something to do for fun, because it's interesting, because I want a line of white Phyllocrania. I also want to maintain a large population so I would have a larger genetic base to work with. The goals of having a viable captive population are...

Well, you are bringing up a lot of interesting issues. I'm not talking about species reintroduction, but yes, it would be nice to have a large captive bred population with great diversity if you want to do a species reintroduction. I don't think it's essential. You have a greater chance of...