A few fresh faces

[guapoalto049]

I haven't had much time to post photos lately, so I've got quite a few.

Here is my female Idolo next to a frozen Chinese female. The Chinese did shrink some but I thought it was cool:

More Idolo photo madness:

 

[guapoalto049]

A few other neat ones I took recently.

Adult female ghost still kickin':

Not for the squeamish!

One of my adult female violins was very very old and nearly dead so I allowed her the chance to participate in the circle of life:

New Deroplatys desiccata female ~L5-6:

Fresh adult male Creobroter gemmatus:

Comparison of a shield and Idolo. Its blurry but you get the idea:

 

[animalexplorer]

Super cool comparison shots! TFS

 

[sporeworld]

Great Job!

What are you feeding your adult Idolo now...? Just Blue Bottles?

 

[hibiscusmile]

I finally put my finger on why the idolos dont' do so well, people keep freezing them :tt2:

 

[nursemelody]

How tall are the Idolos? They are gorgeous..... What is too cold for them? Do they need a heating pad or lamp?

 

[lancaster1313]

Great pics. I am all for the circle of life thing, why let a body go to waste, or have to suffer the slow decline. :mellow:

 

[wyethia]

Dont tell the budwing, but that violin makes her butt look fat...

Wyethia

 

[angelofdeathzz]

Great pics!!! You have quite the Zoo there... Ha-ha

 

[guapoalto049]

Thanks for the comments everyone!

@Sporeworld: I'm feeding her adult lobster roaches, moths, and bumble bees, and the occasional crow. I haven't had bluebottles in awhile but once I get them they'll be added too.

@nursemelody: They are at least 4" tall, without doubt the tallest species I've kept. Pretty intimidating! And I think Rebecca was kidding about the freezing haha, I kept them around 80 the whole time, dropping to 70ish at night.

 

[sporeworld]

I'm feeding her adult lobster roaches, moths, and bumble bees...

Fascinating. I didn't think she'd go for the roaches (hand fed?).

And are you just getting bubblebees from the garden? I wonder if anyone has tried to raise them (or carpenter bees, or similar).

 

[PhilinYuma]

Fascinating. I didn't think she'd go for the roaches (hand fed?).

And are you just getting bubblebees from the garden? I wonder if anyone has tried to raise them (or carpenter bees, or similar).

You may be in luck. Your new journal, Invertebrates Magazine, has run articles on keeping wasps. I've not seen any on bees, but I am a fairly new subscriber; perhaps Orin has a back number on the subject.

For the rest of you, who are envying Sporeworld his new source of information, go here:

http://www.angelfire.com/oh3/elytraandantenna/, scroll down to the mag subscription and become one of the "in" crowd!

 

[guapoalto049]

@Sporeworld: Yes they are hand-fed roaches. She takes them greedily along with everything else. There is a field at my school with a crazy number of bumblebees zipping around so I take a few here and there to keep her diet varied. I've given her two paper wasps too, along with lots of blow flies.

I've never heard of culturing any type of Hymenoptera for feeders. In my experience there are only a few mantids that will handle wasps so I guess it depends on what you're keeping.

 

[sporeworld]

Hmmm. Love to know how you're handling the bumblebees? Catch with a net or a jar? Do you put them in the freezer first? When I was a kid and had frogs, I'd catch the bees with a jar and a lid, then dunk the whole thing under water. I'd pick up the waterlogged bee with a stick and flick him into the "den of a thousand tounges" (well, 40, but still).

 

[guapoalto049]

Hmmm. Love to know how you're handling the bumblebees? Catch with a net or a jar? Do you put them in the freezer first? When I was a kid and had frogs, I'd catch the bees with a jar and a lid, then dunk the whole thing under water. I'd pick up the waterlogged bee with a stick and flick him into the "den of a thousand tounges" (well, 40, but still).

I use my trusty net and tweezers to transport them. I let them buzz around the cage, I feel it gets the mantid more excited than hand feeding it.

 

[sporeworld]

Makes sense. I've seen my Idolos lift their feet to let a flie WALK on by, but heaven help that critter if he FLIES by! :2guns:

 

[Ricardo]

Idolo's are so huge! Wish I had some!