Battle of the nymphs!

[Obie]

On tuesday I had an ooth of P. aeruginosa, an ooth of H. grandis, and an ooth of S. limbata hatch. Thats right, ooths from 3 different species, laid weeks apart, all hatched at exactly the same time! I'm a little short on space and I still have unhatched ooths of all 3 species :shock: , so I provided a small cage for each species...each just large enough for a couple of dozen nymphs.

I then dumped the several hundred remaining L1 nymphs together into a huge screened cage I use to mate giant silkmoths along with a few hundred fruit flies, and let them fight it out! Its a bit like being a Roman Emperor, but on a much smaller scale... lol I would estimate that the starting numbers in the arena were around ~60-70 S. limbata, ~100-150 P. aeruginosa and ~200 H. grandis. All were about the same size, with the P. aeruginosa being a tiny bit smaller, and the S. limbata quite a bit stalkier.

I've been checking on them regularly to see who is becoming food and who is getting fatter. As of today (sunday) the P. aeruginosa have suffered some big losses. The S. limbata nymphs seem to be doing most of the eating, as they are all pretty fat and healthy looking.

Anyway, being an entomology student I'm normally pretty serious about my rearing, but I thought I'd have a some fun this time .

Obie

 

[robo mantis]

i may take some nymphs

 

[Johnald Chaffinch]

that would be so cool to see. any videos?

 

[Rib]

theres plenty of people in the US that would happily take some of the nymphs off your hands, plenty would pay for them.

 

[nickyp0]

what rib said lol^^

 

[Obie]

Well, I've been inundated with requests for nymphs . I should have realized that would happen, since there are many who would love some and it sounds like I'm wasting them. Here's the situation:

I am not opposed to selling some at a later date. But I will be extremely busy with school for the next few weeks, and thats one of the reasons why I decided to let the nymphs battle each other rather than sell my extras (the post office is a long drive plus about an hour wait to ship a box of nymphs, and I just don't have the time with my current classes and work schedule ). But once things cool off a bit and I get a break from midterms, I will put some up for sale rather than simply wasting them .

Until then, its game-on at the nymph Colosseum!

Obie

 

[Jodokohajjio]

If I were in Rome, I'd wager a good amount on the grandis...their size and temperment is going to give them a big advantage (not to mention their overwhelming number).

 

[Obie]

Well, midterms are over and the H. grandis have come out on top. I have separated the remaining nymphs and put an end to the carnage. The P. aeruginosa were completely wiped out, and just a few battle-hardened S. limbata remained.

I'm selling my extra H. grandis nymphs for $5 each if anyone wants some. Email me at [email protected] if you would like a few victorious gladiator-nymphs of your own .

Obie