Macropanesthia rhinoceros

[james]

So I got my first young ones the other day and I was thinking man maybe they don't get as big as I thought.
James

SEE BELOW

 

[james]

Oh My God!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So today my adult pairs came in and I was speechless. These are the most impressive insects I've ever handled.
James
www.blaberus.com

 

[dtknow]

Mind popping a ruler up against those things? And maybe add in an adult Madagascar hisser for comparison? They look pretty impressive to say the least.

 

[james]

rhino's

The pictures don't even come close to showing the girth of these beasts. They where chowing on the oak leaves I gave them.
James
www.blaberus.com

 

[Malkavian]

WoW :shock: those are HUGE! I assume they're a "pet" or colony species rather than a feeder?

 

[Farom]

Thats crazy! How much will you be selling the babies for, and when do you think you'll have them available?

Thanks,
Andrew

 

[james]

Rhino's

I have an ad in the classifieds, but they are expensive. They do live 10 years so you get a lot out of them compaired to most insects.
Thx,
James
www.blaberus.com

 

[Ecilious]

You lucky, lucky *******. They are truely beautiful, what are you feeding them?

 

[brachy]

Hi
Nice pic and lovly animals . This webpages of roachs is your ??? This is very great. congrats. I would like to lots of species

 

[Gsc]

Wow James (I just emailed you!), they are huge...my 2 yr olds are tiny like your little one... They say they are sexually amture at 4 yrs...thats a huge jump in size for 2-3 years!

What substrate are you using... Do oak leaves work?

Everything I read online says sand... It looks like you are using a soil mixture...IMO, a soil mixture would work much better..... I'm feeding mine dried Eucalyptus (sorry about spelling) leaves I got from a local health food store.... I have oak trees in my yard... maybe I'll try some oak leaves....

I'll bug ya (no pun intended) later on your setup...I think I'm ready to get an adult pair from ya!

FREAKIN' mindblowing...I've been looking at those pics for a good 20 minutes straight... I love 'em!

 

[james]

Roaches

I feed them oak leaves but will experiment with some Eucalyptus. I've heard there is more than one type and it can kill them if it's the wrong one. So I'll have a two year old too test it out. I was also amazed at there size when I opened the box my eyes popped out. lol . Also, for the persom that asked the website is mine and I have many other species not on the site and other crazy inverts.
Thx,
James
www.blaberus.com

 

[Gsc]

uh oh...hope its the right type... Will any species of Oak leaves work (we have post oak in my region)?

James is a great guy with A++++ roaches...I've ordered from him many times...he worked hard to import these guys! I'm excited to be getting an adult pair!

 

[Cirith Ungol]

Feeders? I guess not! I'd not raise one of those for 8-10 years in order to feed it to my blondi! I'd be heartbroken... I also suspect those guys would fight back bigtime if a blondi tried to play with them!

But I'd love one as a pet (or two... a married couple). So oakleaves and eucalyptus is the only stuff they eat? Not *anything* else?`

I'd never get any of those leaves here I bet!

 

[james]

food

Like most species of roaches the would eat any hardwood leaves to it can be a different type of tree. My friend keeps one that does eat dog chow. Never thought I could have this much fun with a roach.
James
www.blaberus.com

 

[dtknow]

Hmmm...do the males have horns on the pronotum like hissers do also? It looks like it in that last photo.

 

[T. Dawson]

I read something about how these guys are full of cyanide because of their diet of euculyptis leaves in the wild. I don't know if thats true, but I wouldn't want to risk them as feeders... though I don't know that I'd want to go to the trouble of raising them for four years just to feed out the young every so often; it also sounds like they aren't the most prolific of roaches. I can't remember the site that I read this off of, but it was an Australian based site that sold them and kits to schools and other educational institutes.
All in all these are a VERY cool species - that my wife says that I'll never get heh heh. Congrats James!!
Oh and by the way, you mentioned "other crazy inverts", what else you working with? Any beetles, mantids, or phasmids?
Trevor

 

[Gsc]

These roaches are used as "pets" and not for feeders. Thick exoskeleton, SUPER low reproduction rate, ULTRA slow growth rate... too many other "feeder/pet" species to choose from for feeders. James has a bunch of other rare and unusual roach species he's working with!

 

[james]

feeders

Never going to happen. If you where ever lucky enough to breed these guys I highy doubt you would be feeding $100+ roaches to any animals. I have boatloads of feeder roaches but these will never be one of them. Other inverts are T's, vinagaroons, whipscorpions, and beetles. I may get some mantids when I have more time. Orin (mantid assasins) has a great invert magazine he puts out a few times a year that always has great stuff in it. I highly recommend it to anybody looking for some good insect reading. Now I just need to find Megaloblatta longipennis and I will be a happy camper.
James
www.blaberus.com

 

[Scythemantis]

Longipennis...my OTHER dream pet aside from macropanesthia. Both impossible for me to get.

I had heard they ate any type of eucalyptis, but I suspected that might not be the case. Be sure to post your findings so noone screws up in the future! Especially those of us who would have to save for MONTHS to spare $100 on an insect.

 

[brachy]

Hi
Your roachs are very nice. You have got lots of species :clap: :clap: If i buy some species, but You are very far and i haven t got many