AAA's Swarm

[hysteresis]

Wow. Those beetles. Are they really a pest?

I have never seen one before!

 

[BringontheBugs]

I think we tend to overcare for mantids. Proper air, drink, and food. Properly sized enclosures, and timely prey. To me, I think that's as simple as it is.

Just amazing! I'd be proud if my boys turned out like you young folk on this forum.

IDK, I just gave the European a container with good ventilation, tried to not let things ever get that dry in there, gave it a couple small sticks, and fed it Nauphoeta cinerea nymphs and then I just found it laying on the bottom of the enclosure lifeless and discolored one day.  That's the only reason I dropped out of mantids; they are very delicate things and when they die it seems like its never 100% obvious what you did wrong (at least IME). Everything else I've kept to this point is many times hardier.

Wow. Those beetles. Are they really a pest?

I have never seen one before!

 Yep. They get into stored grain products and will also feed on a few organic materials. Luckily, they are easy to contain.

IKR? I had to buy mine before I saw any in real life. lol I actually wish that I suddenly got infested by the other spider beetle species in the U.S, Gibbium aequinoctiale, as I want to breed them and can't seem to find anybody on the internet with them in their home. LOL

 

[Cole 78]

@hysteresis you should DEFINITELY get tarantulas and scorpions. Most tarantulas bites are much less worse than a bee sting. There venom (most new world tarantulas at least) is practically harmless to humans. Now, don't quote me. Some peoples body's respond different to the venom than others. I might just have a little rash while you might have a severely swollen hand! But most tarantulas (again, new world) are super chill and docile. I reccomend Brachypelma sp. I'm getting a N. Incei "gold" form and a Nhandu Chromatus (Brazilian Black and White Bird Eater).  And many scorpions have venom that is practically harmless to humans. But tarantulas are still waaaay better than scorpions. I have sibling 6 and 3 (so relatively close to the age of your kids). I let my parents make sure tarantulas are harmless to the kids first, they did. So now there fine with me keeping them. For more info head of to tarantulaforum.com or arachnoboards.com. Or PM me.

 

[hysteresis]

@Cole 78 My wife won't have it. I'm pretty sure about this. 

 

[MantisGirl13]

@Cole 78 My wife won't have it. I'm pretty sure about this. 

Lol  

Some people just don't get it! 

- MantisGirl13

 

[hysteresis]

Lol  

Some people just don't get it! 

- MantisGirl13

Caleb wants a scorpion.

And a cthulhu.

 

[MantisGirl13]

cthulhu.

What is that?

- MantisGirl13

 

[hysteresis]

What is that?

- MantisGirl13

A fictional beast. 

https://www.google.com/search?q=cthulhu&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwixo_749M_fAhXho4MKHWdQAGEQ_AUIDigB&biw=1600&bih=709

 

[The Mantis Menagerie]

Canada has strict laws, yes.

Definitely not the greatest place to live if you're an invert enthusiast.

Technically, the US has very similar laws, and keeping any exotic mantis or exotic beetle (except for a few Goliathus sp.) and the interstate transport of cockroaches (except G. portentosa) without a PPQ 526 permit is illegal. APHIS just doesn't currently have the capability to enforce the regulations on private individuals. 

 

[BringontheBugs]

Technically, the US has very similar laws, and keeping any exotic mantis or exotic beetle (except for a few Goliathus sp.) and the interstate transport of cockroaches (except G. portentosa) without a PPQ 526 permit is illegal. APHIS just doesn't currently have the capability to enforce the regulations on private individuals. 

Where did you find the info on the interstate transportation of cockroaches? I don't believe I've heard of this before even while being intimately tied up in the roach community. The only thing I've heard with regards to things like that is the restriction from shipping cockroach species to FL which haven't already established themselves there. I'm not sure why G.portentosa would be the only exception considering that almost all other species in the hobby have no greater risk of gaining a foothold outside of their enclosures within the U.S (minus Florida, of course).

 

[BringontheBugs]

Lucihormetica grossei​

Adult male​

Adult female​

Adult pair​

Sub-adult male nymph (adult male previously pictured)​

Pre-sub-adult female nymph (adult female previously pictured)​

Sub-adult male nymph and pre-sub-adult female nymph (adult pair previously pictured)​

Small-medium-sized nymphs​

 

[hysteresis]

Beautiful! 

 

[BringontheBugs]

Beautiful! 

Thanks! They're one of my favorites for sure.  

 

[BringontheBugs]

Asbolus verrucosus​

Adult female​

Adult female playing dead​

Two adult pairs​

 

[BringontheBugs]

Pycnoscelus striatus​

Adult female​

Mixed-size nymphs​

 

[BringontheBugs]

Archimandrita tesselata​

Adult female​

Adult male (a little more pronotum coloration still to come)​

Freshly-molted adult female​

Abnormally-black adult male (a little more pronotum coloration still to come)​

Medium-large nymphs​

Small nymphs​

 

[BringontheBugs]

Eurycotis lixa​

Adult​

Adult male​

Adult female​

Adult pair​

Mixed-sized nymphs​

Freshly-molted nymph​

Ootheca​

 

[danl82]

Nice to see some good pictures of these spectacular species. My personal favourite are your blue desert beetles. Have you been able to breed them?

 

[BringontheBugs]

Nice to see some good pictures of these spectacular species. My personal favourite are your blue desert beetles. Have you been able to breed them?

I appreciate it! There will be much diversity displayed in this thread.  

To my knowledge, I haven't been able to yet, but I very well may be able to here soon. The larvae supposedly live out their lives or at least pupate in roots in the wild and I've been told someone was able to rear a bunch of individuals to adulthood by simply burying a large carrot under the substrate and letting them go to work. I'm trying out the same method , but with a yam instead of a large carrot, which should yield similar results if it's truly possible to culture them like this.

 

[BringontheBugs]

Parcoblatta notha​

Adult female​

Adult female carrying ootheca​

Adult male​

Large nymph​

Small nymphs​