# "Joe's Florida 'Bug' Terrarium"



## xhexdx

Just set this up today - transferred stuff from a ten-gallon into it and added three wandering jew clippings and a hoya.

Entire setup:







Right half:







Left half:







A few ivory millipedes (C. spinigerus):







Pine bark for the two C. hentzi:







Isopods/wandering jew:













A couple beetles:













I found this guy while walking the dogs; one of his wings is broken so he can't fly.  Figured I'd at least let him live out his days in the tank:







Hoya with a millipede trying to make a break for freedom:







An idea of the layers of substrate - sand at the bottom, peat moss in the middle, and topsoil on top:







I also have one of these guys in there:







These were taken when they were in the ten-gallon:





































There are a few species of isopod who seem to be thriving, and I saw a baby earwig as well.  I tossed some crickets in to provide food for the wolf and for the scorps, so we'll see how everything works out.

Something fun to play around with, anyway.

--Joe


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## jbm150

Thats really cool, how big is the new terrarium?

A grass spider would be cool in there too, could set up shop in a corner somewhere


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## xhexdx

36"L X 18"W X 16"H

Once I get a good feeder population going, I will add more spiders.


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## zonbonzovi

I love multi-species tanks & will be following your efforts closely to see how things pan out.  With an exception or two, mine have been miserable failures but have yielded useful info/surprises.  Keep us updated!


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## xhexdx

zbz, thanks. 

Where did you get the millipede in your avatar?  Me want! :}


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## zonbonzovi

They're local-ish, much more so in the coastal areas here.  I'm working at getting offspring and finally figured out the correct food(s) a little while ago.  Hopefully things work out and I can spread the Haraphe love around soon! 

For anyone attempting culture, old Acer macrophyllum leaves seem to be the preferred staple.


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## GiantVinegaroon

Very nice!  Lovin the millipedes!


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## AbraxasComplex

xhexdx said:


> zbz, thanks.
> 
> Where did you get the millipede in your avatar?  Me want! :}


It's the same species I was freaking out about finding the other day. I sent you the scientific name if you didn't delete my text.


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## xhexdx

Ah, yep, I still have the text.  I meant to look it up but never did.

I assume you collected it?


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## beetleman

:clap:awesome fla.native setup,love em all in there.....ofcourse the beetles! keep up the good work.now ya gotta setup an exotic sp. terrarium,heaven knows what we have down here


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## AbraxasComplex

xhexdx said:


> Ah, yep, I still have the text.  I meant to look it up but never did.
> 
> I assume you collected it?


Yep. She's my desk pet at work. I even named her after the brand of flow injection analyses spectrometer brand we have that tests for cyanide (since she releases hydrogen-cyanide gas).


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## lancej

Is that Pasimachus munching on an isopod?  If it is, that could be bad news for their population in your tank.  My Pasimachus are eating machines!  Very cool set-up, by the way!


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## Travis K

Joe that setup looks pretty good. Can't wait for updates good or bad, but like John said even failures yeild useful information.


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## xhexdx

lancej said:


> Is that Pasimachus munching on an isopod?  If it is, that could be bad news for their population in your tank.  My Pasimachus are eating machines!  Very cool set-up, by the way!


You know, I hadn't even noticed what it was eating until you mentioned that.  I'll keep an eye on the isopod population, but odds are I'll remove the Pasimachus if they devastate the isopods too much.

Thanks for the heads up!


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## sjeckert6297

OMG that is the coolest thing I have ever seen!  (Rubbing hands together with evil laugh while plotting to make my own)  Thank you so much for sharing this!


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## malevolentrobot

very nice! looking at the pics over my phone did it no justice. cute millis, but i especially like beetle you found.


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## Musicwolf

Gorgeous Joe - - It looks like a ton of fun to watch - - nice setup.


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## beetleman

lancej said:


> Is that Pasimachus munching on an isopod?  If it is, that could be bad news for their population in your tank.  My Pasimachus are eating machines!  Very cool set-up, by the way!


oh yeah,they are extremely aggressive,have a bunch aswell,they are the gladiators of the insect world


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## Balkastalkman

lancej said:


> Is that Pasimachus munching on an isopod?  If it is, that could be bad news for their population in your tank.  My Pasimachus are eating machines!  Very cool set-up, by the way!


It actually looks like its just snacking on an exoskeleton of an isopod. Wouldnt be surprised if the isopods were being eaten by the pasimachi though.

 I dont think a few beetles would make a difference even if they were eating the isopods the breed like crazy...... and if it does just keep adding more isopods that wouldnt hurt.


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## 1Lord Of Ants1

Question, what are the millipedes in the 17th picture called? I find them often here but I never though about keeping them. Are they interesting to keep?


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## xhexdx

Narceus gordanus.  They're boring as hell.

They don't walk around on you like the ivory 'pedes do, they're nocturnal, and they stay buried most of the time.

The ivory millipedes are great though.


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## Meecht

Around here, we refer to that green beetle as a "June bug."  Similar to "Japanese beetles" that people tend to put up traps for around their flower gardens (in my area, anyway).

Using some Google-fu, I'm guessing the scientific name is Cotinis nitida.


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## thumpersalley

I have read so much about mixing the millipede species is bad because of chemical transfer so I havent ventured into making a mixed tank. Does anyone have an opinion on not only mixing milipedes but all of the other insects in the original posters thread? Kim


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## tress29

Let me reveal my ignorance and ask what kind of spider that is?!

Theresa in Indy


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## zonbonzovi

thumpersalley said:


> I have read so much about mixing the millipede species is bad because of chemical transfer so I havent ventured into making a mixed tank. Does anyone have an opinion on not only mixing milipedes but all of the other insects in the original posters thread? Kim


Not sure about the chemical transfer(although small spaces + uber-defensive millipede species + overcrowding = bad things, depending on the species), I was always more concerned with not being able to ID the millipede offspring produced in a group tank.  I've noticed shared spaces in natural settings between different millipede species(esp. in the NW).  My money's on the Centruroides or Pasimachus taking out a tank mate before anything.

Theresa, the spider's a wolf...Hogna, maybe?


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## 1Lord Of Ants1

zonbonzovi said:


> Not sure about the chemical transfer(although small spaces + uber-defensive millipede species + overcrowding = bad things, depending on the species), I was always more concerned with not being able to ID the millipede offspring produced in a group tank.  I've noticed shared spaces in natural settings between different millipede species(esp. in the NW).  My money's on the Centruroides or Pasimachus taking out a tank mate before anything.
> 
> Theresa, the spider's a wolf...Hogna, maybe?


Hogna lenta.


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## Tarantel

Wow! That is really cool! Will all of them get along together? :clap::clap:


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## InsectChick

Super cool setup! :clap:


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## xhexdx

Thanks everyone.


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## Fuzzy

That's awesome! I wish that I had seen this thread before I post my thread about self-sufficient terrariums. :8o

Have you had any luck getting the feeders/beetles to breed? When I tried it everything except for the isodpods and some mites just slowly died off.


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## FrostyCakee

It really is a thing of wonder. Looking at it you never know what your going to see.
Getting to it is a pain in the a**. ;P;P


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## xhexdx

Yeah, yeah.

I added these guys last week:







Also, the millipedes had a bit of a population explosion.  The vivarium is literally crawling with babies:







I know it's a terrible shot, sorry.


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## Amoeba

YOu're gonna have stick bug population explosion with that pair. These are just like what I found and sent the pic of to you. Shoulda told me to grab them for you.


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## xhexdx

Alright, so here's an update:

Stick bugs are gone.  Not sure what happened, but I can't find them anywhere and I don't see any remains either.
Most of the large beetles in the top pictures are gone as well.
Isopods are breeding like mad.  
N. gordanus and C. spinigerus are still there.
I think the wolf spiders are gone.
The scarab beetle is gone.
The baby millipede explosion has faded.  Hardly any in there any more.  Any suggestions?  Does anyone think they might be getting eaten?
The wandering jews got eaten, but the hoya is doing well.

I add dried shrubbery every now and then, and also added a large piece of pine bark about 3 weeks ago.  I toss romaine lettuce in every couple of days.

I think I want to add some earthworms, some spiders (maybe a couple jumpers or wolf spiders), a couple more C. hentzi, and more crickets, earwigs, and other 'food' insects.

Any other suggestions are appreciated.

--Joe


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## Shrike

Nice.  Hoyas are fantastic plants.  If you can get one to flower, it's quite a sight.  

Hoya lanceolata:




Wandering Jew is nice as well.  That stuff could survive Armageddon.  Do you use either of these in tarantula vivs as well?


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## xhexdx

I use wandering jew.  The hoya isn't large enough for me to start taking clippings yet.  I just ordered some more though, so it'll be an addition in the next viv I plan to make.

Here's the thread with all the vivs I've made so far:

http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?216672-xhexdx-s-vivarium-picture-thread

Update:

I added a large piece of pine bark, some dead plants, a stick, some leaves, four harvestmen, yadda yadda...

The stick insects disappeared.  So did all the baby millipedes.  The wandering jew got eaten, but the hoya is still doing well.

Here are some (crappy) pictures taken tonight, and a (crappy) video taken with the lights off, using a flashlight.

Pics:

























Video:

[YOUTUBE]zD5DWSTKZbo[/YOUTUBE]


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## Terry D

Joe, Neat set-up! The last time I tried one of those multi-species enclosures, all of my hard work was met with utter failure...... I mean, who's to tell a 6 year-old kid that you can't keep 5 adult male green anoles in the same tank- then things like "dang, that was my favorite cricket they just ate!!" :sarcasm:  I might try it again someday- of course, doing things a bit differently than back in the day......


xhexdx said:


> I add dried shrubbery every now and then,..........
> 
> --Joe


That statement left me with an image of you pushing a wheelbarrow full of tumbleweed up a ramp into a living-room-sized aquarium!! :laugh:

Good luck with it, Watch out for the chemical that type of walking stick sprays. I've heard it is very rough on the eyes and it certainly is on the schnozz! I've come very close to getting it in my eyes. Btw, does anyone EVER find these things by themselves!!?)

Keep us updated, 

T


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## xhexdx

Thanks Terry.

Just caught 6 of these guys (Asiomorpha coarctata) while walking the dogs, gonna put them in there too:


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## satchellwk

The terrarium is looking good. As you saw, I've recently started one very similar that was inspired by yours a bit. It's too bad your ivory babies didn't make it; I have a feeling that they might depend on large amounts of hardwood mulch to survive, but that's just a hypothesis. Those new pedes look good, much like oxidus gracillus that I find in my area. 
By the way, what species of roach is that in there? I think I missed the update when you added them.


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## Tarantel

How big were those stick insects?


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## Tarantula_Tamer

Looks awesome, sounds awesome!


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