Best beginner millipedes

[Phidippus audax Jumper]

Hi, I would like to know what all of your recommendations for beginner millipedes! I recently have dove into the world of myriapods, and am now fascinated by millipedes. So, I would like to know your reccs, as I may be getting some in the next three or four months.

 

[KuneHere]

I recommed Giant Olives (T.Aoutii). Got them as my first millies and they are quite hardy.

 

[Phidippus audax Jumper]

I also forgot to mention in the original post, what do you think about Smoky Oak millipedes?

 

[kjgalaxy]

First question would be are you in the US or elsewhere? If you are in the US, my absolute favorites are the ivory millipedes from Florida (Chicobolus Spinigerus). They are relatively inexpensive, there are a couple different colors, it's easy to tell males and females apart, and they are often active during the daytime. They are fairly hardy. The Aoutii are wonderful, some of my favorite, but in the States, quite pricey. The spirostreptus species 1 are similar to the Aoutii in appearance, hardy, easy to breed, and not break the bank expensive, but also can be hard to find. Scarlets (Trigoniulus corallinus) and bumblebees (Anadenobolus monilicornis) are inexpensive and reasonably hardy.

 

[Phidippus audax Jumper]

I live in the US. I was looking at T. Aoutii, and I was like 'wow, they're expensive!'

 

[kjgalaxy]

On ebay you can often find scarlet and bumblebee as composters and get a large quantity for a very inexpensive price. But if you enjoy watching them, the ivories usually are the most fun and stay on top a lot. The orthoporus ornatus (texas desert) require a little drier and little warmer temps, and they are very prone to release their defensive musk, so I no longer try to keep them (i.e., they tend to smell). The little feather millies I think are pretty, but require cold temps to flourish. I like to just keep most of mine in the same tank, which has its issues at times, but generally, unless you're breeding, works well so long as they all like the same conditions.

 

[Phidippus audax Jumper]

Thanks for the info! What do you think of smoky oak millipedes?

 

[Isopods others]

I've got bumble bees and would not reccomend not because they are difficult but they are rather dull ( though brightly coloured )and small, however I did just get ivories a few hours earlier as of this post- Would reccomend! They are larger and quite pretty and require lower temp than bumblebee's so a a power outage won't kill them quickly

 

[kjgalaxy]

I agree that the scarlets and bumbles are a bit dull. I have bought thru this site by watching what people have advertised in the classifieds and contacting them. We tend to give each other good breaks in prices. What will kill you is the cost of overnight shipping. I just went to the 2022 reptile expo and there were a handful of folks there with insects and giant millies. Some were rare, some were rather overpriced, but a few had really reasonable prices, and obviously, no shipping. So if you have reptile shows, repticon, etc, in your area, you will potentially find some good sources for millies and decent prices, and decent prices on soil and leaves. As for the smokey oaks and pink foots, well, they're okay, They are bigger than most ivories but I don't find them particularly interesting for the most part. I love the gigas, west africans, ivories, Spirotstreptus Sp 1, Aoutti, and I just laid hands on some fire millies, but don't know yet how they'll do. I strongly recommend going with stuff under $20 a piece and keep them for a few years. Learn where you have issues, temp, humidity, finding decent inexpensive food and soil, cage size, etc. After you have a solid understanding, then step up to the more expensive ones. Being in the US, laying hands on some of the most exotic is hard and they are brutal expensive since we can't import anymore. One extra piece of advice - make sure you know how long they live. I adore the flamelegs, but they are very expensive and only live a couple years, so I prefer to invest in something that will live much longer at those prices.

 

[Phidippus audax Jumper]

Thanks!

 

[Phidippus audax Jumper]

Also... One more question. Can I use very large plastic containers instead of glass ones? I find that when I use plastic containers (snails, some of my spiders, slugs) it is MUCH easier to thoroughly clean, and also inexpensive. But I didn't know if it would be a problem, if I used heating pads or something.

 

[Diplopodia]

My first was Orthoporus Ornatus they are active and the longest species native to the USA. They live in the desert and don't need a lot of humidity like other millipedes. They also don't breed in captivity so you can keep a colony and not worry about an exploding population.
Ivory's are fantastic, they are always trucking around the surface. Really pretty too, there's a lot of different morphs out there. I have three different types of Ivories right now.

 

[Phidippus audax Jumper]

I am definitely leaning toward either sonoran desert millies or Ivory millies now. Thank you this info is so awesome!

 

[Arthropod Universe]

The downside to desert Millies is that they aren’t captive bred so there is always the risk of parasites. After I got my first Millie who is a desert I found out that almost all of them are wild caught and after a week of having him I rarely see him come out of the dirt maybe get ivories as there are a ton of localities and stuff

 

[megansmillipedes]

I agree that the scarlets and bumbles are a bit dull. I have bought thru this site by watching what people have advertised in the classifieds and contacting them. We tend to give each other good breaks in prices. What will kill you is the cost of overnight shipping. I just went to the 2022 reptile expo and there were a handful of folks there with insects and giant millies. Some were rare, some were rather overpriced, but a few had really reasonable prices, and obviously, no shipping. So if you have reptile shows, repticon, etc, in your area, you will potentially find some good sources for millies and decent prices, and decent prices on soil and leaves. As for the smokey oaks and pink foots, well, they're okay, They are bigger than most ivories but I don't find them particularly interesting for the most part. I love the gigas, west africans, ivories, Spirotstreptus Sp 1, Aoutti, and I just laid hands on some fire millies, but don't know yet how they'll do. I strongly recommend going with stuff under $20 a piece and keep them for a few years. Learn where you have issues, temp, humidity, finding decent inexpensive food and soil, cage size, etc. After you have a solid understanding, then step up to the more expensive ones. Being in the US, laying hands on some of the most exotic is hard and they are brutal expensive since we can't import anymore. One extra piece of advice - make sure you know how long they live. I adore the flamelegs, but they are very expensive and only live a couple years, so I prefer to invest in something that will live much longer at those prices.

I second bumble bee Millipedes being boring lol I have two of them and I haven’t seen one in about a month..

 

[Isopods others]

Is it bad I only see one of my ivory millipedes, I never see the other one or any of my bumblebee millipedes

 

[Isopods others]

Is it bad I only see one of my ivory millipedes, I never see the other one or any of my bumblebee millipedes

As of late the second ivory has resurfaced

 

[Elytra and Antenna]

I live in the US. I was looking at T. Aoutii, and I was like 'wow, they're expensive!'

I would suggest Thai rainbows, very long-lived, hardy, C.B. and not expensive.

 

[MillipedeFan]

Is it bad I only see one of my ivory millipedes, I never see the other one or any of my bumblebee millipedes

I never see my sister’s bumblebee millipedes either

 

[Isopods others]

Burrowers no doubt, not good for begginers not due to care but rather elusiveness