Breeding solfugid(Rhagodes sp.)

[Edan bandoot]

You're doing great things man : )

 

[attenboroughii]

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Babies and juveniles are kept in a shallow cup of crushed akadamatsuchi (red ball earth, maybe red soil).

Feeding common green bottle fly (Lucilia sericata) to solifugae.
Rhagodes sp. also eat crickets and roaches, but they like flies the best. Keep them as full as possible.

Eventually, the babies will go dormant, but dormancy is time-dependent (babies go dormant roughly within 2 weeks of becoming active).
This is why I feed them a lot in a short period of time. If there is not enough food, they will starve to death.
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As a side note, the 2nd instar babies can be kept together.

Once they have eaten a lot of food, the soil should be dry so that they cannot dig.
It's not safe to be buried.

Have sweet dreams...

The resting time varies, as short as a month or less, and as long as 5 months or more.
I keep a constant temperature of 82℉ even during the winter.
Sometimes, slightly moisten the soil on the rim of the cup.


After a good rest, the baby will begin to moult. He is staying in this condition for a while.


Babies moulted into 3rd instar.

 

[paumotu]

Any updates @attenboroughii ? Very curious to see how your Rhagodes project has developed after all these months.

 

[attenboroughii]

They are doing well.
Rhagodes(F2) are in its 4-5th instar. But some are still 3rd instar.
Dormancy is prolonged in winter even when kept at constant temperatures.
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This is a Rhagodes born in 2019.
More and more Rhagodes become active in the spring.

 

[paumotu]

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They are doing well.
Rhagodes(F2) are in its 4-5th instar. But some are still 3rd instar.
Dormancy is prolonged in winter even when kept at constant temperatures.
View attachment 415333

















This is a Rhagodes born in 2019.
More and more Rhagodes become active in the spring.

That’s great to hear! Have you been keeping other genera of solifuge, like Paragaleodes? It would be amazing if there was a way to breed the “fluffier” specie as well.

 

[attenboroughii]

I can keep Galeodes and Paragaleodes for several years. They live a long time.
But it is difficult to get an egg-bearing female or mature males. Not much in stock.
If they arrive this year, I will try to breed them...


This eggs were laid by an egg-bearing female imported in July 2020.
Eggs were fertilized, but unfortunately did not hatch well.

Egg laid female.

 

[paumotu]

View attachment 415346
I can keep Galeodes and Paragaleodes for several years. They live a long time.
But it is difficult to get an egg-bearing female or mature males. Not much in stock.
If they arrive this year, I will try to breed them...
View attachment 415342
View attachment 415343
This eggs were laid by an egg-bearing female imported in July 2020.
Eggs were fertilized, but unfortunately did not hatch well.
View attachment 415344
Egg laid female.

Interesting. Are the eggs meant to be laid on the surface, or was the female supposed to create a brood chamber?

 

[attenboroughii]

Interesting. Are the eggs meant to be laid on the surface, or was the female supposed to create a brood chamber?

I think they make egg chambers in the soil.
Also, I don't know why, but yellow solifugae often lay immature eggs with them.

 

[attenboroughii]

Well, I made this last year.
This is an imitation of egg chamber.
If you make them dig in the soil when they lay eggs, they need lots of soil and the containers will be heavy. It is hard when there are many adult females.
Put the female that has finished mating into a cup like this. Add a little dry black soil.


They lay their eggs in these.
Place a damp tissue over the mesh, as excessive drying will result in incubation failure.





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She was raised well.
Adult female looks debilitated, in fact debilitated.
It is the natural state of this species adult female that have completed their incubation silently ends her life.

 

[kingshockey]

man this is one of the best threads i have read here thanks for the amazinginfo and knowledge you have given us op

 

[Edan bandoot]

View attachment 415545
Well, I made this last year.
This is an imitation of egg chamber.
If you make them dig in the soil when they lay eggs, they need lots of soil and the containers will be heavy. It is hard when there are many adult females.
Put the female that has finished mating into a cup like this. Add a little dry black soil.

View attachment 415546
They lay their eggs in these.
Place a damp tissue over the mesh, as excessive drying will result in incubation failure.

View attachment 415547
View attachment 415548
View attachment 415549
View attachment 415550
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She was raised well.
Adult female looks debilitated, in fact debilitated.
It is the natural state of this species adult female that have completed their incubation silently ends her life.

looks like you're getting it down to a science!

what size containers do you keep the babies and juveniles in after they've been separated?

 

[attenboroughii]

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Because of their large numbers and troublesome feeding, they are first kept in flat cups of about 430 ml divided into about 20-30 Rhagodes each.
They feed on common green bottle flies (Lucilia sericata), halved crickets (Acheta domestica), and roaches (Shelfordella lateralis).


Once well fed, keep each Rhagodes in a 120 ml cup and transfer them to about a 260 ml cup when they are about 7th instar.

 

[Edan bandoot]

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Because of their large numbers and troublesome feeding, they are first kept in flat cups of about 0.43 liter divided into about 20-30 Rhagodes each.
They feed on common green bottle flies (Lucilia sericata), halved crickets (Acheta domestica), and roaches (Shelfordella lateralis).

View attachment 415581
Once well fed, keep each Rhagodes in a 0.12 liter cup and transfer them to about a 0.26 liter cup when they are about 7th instar.

do you think enclosure size matters for longevity?

what size would you recommend someone keep them in after they're purchased from you?

 

[attenboroughii]

do you think enclosure size matters for longevity?

what size would you recommend someone keep them in after they're purchased from you?

I don't think there is any connection between longevity and enclosure.
In fact, they don't get tired from walking around, and when they are tired, they rest properly.
I keep them in small enclosures because there are so many of them and they hardly move.
Their lifespan is related molt Frequency.
Individuals that molt earlier become adults earlier and their lifespan ends earlier. So far, under the same conditions, I have had one individual that molts quickly and another that grows slowly, becoming an adult as early as 2 years, while one has survived for more than 4.5 years. Maybe they will live longer than 5 years.


This is a Rhagodes that I have kept since 2017. There is no sign of them becoming adults yet. Also, She have not molted in 2 years.

You can keep them in any size enclosure you like. Just be careful not to make it too large, you' ll lost them while they are dormant.

Rhagodes molt repeatedly at a constant temperature of 82℉, but maybe yellow Solifugae (Galeodes, Paragaleodes) need hibernation to molt.


This is a Paragaleodes I got in July 2020 and it has not moved in almost 2 years. In my rearing environment, yellow Solifugae tend to have long dormancy periods.
Maybe not hibernating them would rather extend their lifespan? That is my opinion.
I will have to look into it.

 

[Wolfram1]

Do you know if incest becomes an issue or have you been avoiding that from the start?

 

[attenboroughii]

Do you know if incest becomes an issue or have you been avoiding that from the start?

I tried it.
These Rhagodes(F2) was born last year as an inbreeding between adults born in 2019.
4th instar and so far it doesn't seem to be causing any problems.

There is no indication that they will die soon.
But I don't know yet what will happen with the next generation of inbreeding.

 

[Wolfram1]

These Rhagodes(F2) was born last year as an inbreeding between adults born in 2019.
4th instar and so far it doesn't seem to be causing any problems.

There is no indication that they will die soon.

Thx, for the reply but that was not what i was referring to. As an example, a friend of mine imported Phiddipus regius twice. Each time they grew and bred well but suddenly stopped producing viable offspring after the 3rd generation. The females would ether lay empty eggsacks or not lay at all, despite there being over a dozen breeding pairs.
I have since learned that the high tolerance for incest that is often ascribed to spiders and Theraphosidae in particular does not include these jumping spiders. It makes sense that Theraphosidae spiders for example, are more tolerant towards incest than others since they exist in small populations with limited mobility.

Another example would be various roaches. Some species are perfectly fine establishing themselves from just a single ootheca, these are mostly the species we commonly refer to as pest species. On the other hand there are those that are hard to keep in captivity because they require the continued input of fresh genes every few generations.

I would be really interested if you can keep breeding your animals long term or if there will come a point were they will suffer from reduced fertility or other negative developments due to incest.

 

[attenboroughii]

Thx, for the reply but that was not what i was referring to. As an example, a friend of mine imported Phiddipus regius twice. Each time they grew and bred well but suddenly stopped producing viable offspring after the 3rd generation. The females would ether lay empty eggsacks or not lay at all, despite there being over a dozen breeding pairs.
I have since learned that the high tolerance for incest that is often ascribed to spiders and Theraphosidae in particular does not include these jumping spiders. It makes sense that Theraphosidae spiders for example, are more tolerant towards incest than others since they exist in small populations with limited mobility.

Another example would be various roaches. Some species are perfectly fine establishing themselves from just a single ootheca, these are mostly the species we commonly refer to as pest species. On the other hand there are those that are hard to keep in captivity because they require the continued input of fresh genes every few generations.

I would be really interested if you can keep breeding your animals long term or if there will come a point were they will suffer from reduced fertility or other negative developments due to incest.

I'm getting juveniles from multiple wild parents, so for a while, I don't have to worry about the inbreeding issue.

I would also like to continue to keep them.
It is going to take a while yet, and it may take another 5-6 years at the earliest just to identify the 3 generations.

 

[Wolfram1]

Ether way, i hope all goes well, with your project.


And if it is alright, i do have another question:
What do you use for ventilation in your brood chambers. It looks like paper but i imagine it must be a tough material.

 

[attenboroughii]

Ether way, i hope all goes well, with your project.


And if it is alright, i do have another question:
What do you use for ventilation in your brood chambers. It looks like paper but i imagine it must be a tough material.

Is this it?
This filter is made of nylon. It seems sturdy.


250ml case for temporarily keeping stag beetles and other insects.