American giant millipede staying on the surface?

[witchimage]

Hi, yesterday I was given a wild caught American giant millipede (narceus americanus). I’m fairly certain it’s a full grown female and she seems to be in good health. However, she won’t bury beneath her substrate? I used pesticide-free dirt from my yard mixed with coconut fiber as a temporary fix until I’m able to get something proper.

Is there any reason why she is remaining on the surface? The substrate doesn’t seem to be too solid. She dug a tunnel, but didn’t submerge herself completely.

 

[Arthroverts]

How moist is the substrate? Millipedes are known to stay on the surface and wander continuously in search of moisture if the substrate is too dry. Pictures of your setup would definitely help as well.

Also, you are going to need to get her set up in something better here very soon, as millipedes do not do well on substrates like that for very long. If you have them, adding rotting wood and rotting leaves to the enclosure will help extend the amount of time you can keep her in there, but a more permanent substrate is going to be necessary soon. For ideas on what that looks like I recommend checking out this website and this thread.

Hope this helps,

Arthroverts

 

[witchimage]

How moist is the substrate? Millipedes are known to stay on the surface and wander continuously in search of moisture if the substrate is too dry. Pictures of your setup would definitely help as well.

Also, you are going to need to get her set up in something better here very soon, as millipedes do not do well on substrates like that for very long. If you have them, adding rotting wood and rotting leaves to the enclosure will help extend the amount of time you can keep her in there, but a more permanent substrate is going to be necessary soon. For ideas on what that looks like I recommend checking out this website and this thread.

Hope this helps,

Arthroverts

Here is the setup. There she is on top of the apple slice/partially buried in the substrate. I was given two wild caught flat-backed millipedes (Apheloria virginiensis, I think, Google isn’t too clear) that you can see there as well. This isn’t a permanent setup either, I’m moving them to something much bigger when I’m able.

The substrate definitely isn’t too dry, could it be that it’s too moist? I could remove them from the enclosure and place it under heat to dry it out some.

 

[davehuth]

This enclosure may be a bit small to house your Narceus with your Xystodesmids (large flat-backs). The Hydrogen Cyanide secreted by the Xystodesmids can be quite potent. They're not even immune to it themselves and have been known to inadvertently kill each other when kept in large numbers together with poor ventilation. In my experience, Narceus are physically tough but environmentally sensitive, and she could be thrown off by low level toxicity in the atmosphere or substrate. Just a thought to watch out for.

 

[SeaNettle]

I would also say that that enclosure may be a bit small in this case. I recently had one of my Narceus Americanus pass due to a fluctuation in environmental conditions.

 

[witchimage]

Thanks for the info everyone, I think I’ll be releasing all three because I don’t want to risk their lives. I didn’t exactly feel comfortable obtaining them directly from the wild anyway. I have three other millipedes that I am more than happy with. If I’m interested in these two species in the future I’ll keep this thread in mind and be properly prepared.