One of the more impressive acquisitions from that trip were these pure Blaberus giganteus "PA University". These are a big, beautiful, and relatively hardy line, and the first and only giganteus I have kept. I'm glad to finally be breeding these, and to be able to make them available, as it can be tricky to find real, pure giganteus nowadays.
I have mine in a 27 qt. container with moderate levels of ventilation. I have them on 2 inches or so of coconut fiber mixed with coco coir chunks, and they have some eggcrate and vertically slanted bark hides to cling to. I keep two thirds of the substrate humid, the other third dry, and am feeding them dog food, fruits and veggies. The colony is sitting at about 80F°.
They are not an unattractive species, but boy do I wish they would leave my collection alone... 🙃
Here are some pictures of an adult female:
Such impressive roaches, and I believe the third longest species of cockroach in terms of wingspan (being beat by Megaloblatta longipennis, and M.blaberoides respectively). Definitely a must have for cockroach enthusiasts everywhere!
At some point I did another trade with Satchell Watts-Kerr, for a variety of inverts that I still need to post about... including these beautiful Labidura riparia "Lake Placid, FL". This is one of the largest earwigs present in the US, and perhaps the longest considering the crazy long forceps that major males possess. The patterning of this species varies a lot from locality to locality, this one a relatively dark locality with some nice red highlights.
Now I'd heard that these were a finicky species, and to an extent that is true, as these are an especially protein hungry and predatory species, for an earwig. However, with ample space, some live prey and more basic protein sources available at all times, I have had no issues establishing and maintaining a thriving colony of this species at all. 🤷
I have mine in a moderately ventilated 5 gallon gasket bin, with 3-4 inches of a sand and coco fiber mix (about 60% sand, 40% coco fiber). I am keeping them moist and at 80-85F°, and am feeding them dog food and fish pellets, as well as Compsodes, Nocticola and Tagaloblatta. There are also Trichorhina tomentosa breeding in their setup that I'm sure they're consuming as well.
Here are some pics of an adult male:
The forceps on these guys are crazy, such a pretty and unique species of earwig, and again, pretty large as well!
I'm pretty much always getting in new bugs from Alan Jeon, he is truly an enabler to my addiction. 🤣 One addition that I've been lusting after for years are these currently undescribed Euthlastoblatta sp. "Miramar Beach, FL". They are found in multiple areas in Florida and I think adjacent states as well, and are a large species for the genus, with very attractively patterned nymphs.
I set up my 2.1 adult trio in a well ventilated gallon jar with a thin layer of coconut fiber substrate topped in a few inches of coco coir chunks. I'm feeding them dog food and apple slices, and am keeping them semi-humid, at around 80-85F°. They seem to be doing well, and I started finding hatchlings last month, and at least one male and the female are still alive.
Here are some pictures of an adult pair:
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| Male |
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| Female |
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| Female (Left) & Male (Right) |
Quite an attractive species IMO, can't wait to see their nymphs grow up so I can get some pictures of their striking, ornate patterning! This is supposed to be quite a finicky species, so if I can successfully establish a colony and get them thriving for me, that would be quite the achievement!
One of the more annoying pests in my collection are Pyralis farinalis, the Meal Moth. They have a propensity for getting into enclosures, and their larvae create silken tubes in the substrate which they live within, feeding on leaf litter and grain based foods. Large infestations can turn the upper layers of substrate into a solid mat of silk tubes, which is rather unappealing and can be stressful to some inverts.
Despite this, some of you FREAKS actually like these things and want to culture them... I suppose adults could make good feeders for arboreal, visual predators, but at what cost?
In any case, I decided to offer them on my For Sale page, and have surpringly had some takers already. I needed to get some photos for my listing, so here:
Now for something a bit more unusual, while hiking the Kepros Mountain trail outside of Boise, ID, I came across a beetle I have never seen before, and that I could not identify, even to family for the life of me. Turns out, it was a Pseudomorpha species, so called "Western False Form Beetles", I assume because they look nothing like typical members of their family, Carabidae. Their larvae are ant nest inquilines, and most species in the US are still undescribed. Very neat little beetles that I've never even heard of before, always nice to learn something new! 😄
Here are some pictures I took of the little cutie before I let it go:
Too bad they are dependent on ants for their development, so they're not something I would ever realistically attempt breeding myself.
Anyways, that does it for this post, thanks for reading, hope everyone enjoyed, and I'll see you all next time! 😉
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