Damselfly setup

Trace

Arachnosquire
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Apr 12, 2003
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My supervisor went out and collected some Damselflies and asked me to set them up. Do you guys have any suggestions on how to keep them? I was thinking in a large mesh cage with plenty of sticks and a large water bowl. These guys eat fruit flies like dragonflies right?
 

andy83

Arachnoknight
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Nov 5, 2004
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There was a fairly recent thread that I put up about about finding these guys in my vivarium. Funny thing is tonight when I got home I found another...it is more of a blue color instead of the green like the last one. This one molted out just fine and is flying around like a happy little camper.

Are you wanting them to reproduce for you? That might require a more elaborate setup but I'm sure it's doable. You would have to keep the humidity up with a mesh cage....that might end up being a pain.

Just some thoughts.

-Andy
 

Mat

Arachnosquire
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May 3, 2005
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How you set theings up depends on what you want to do with them. If you just want to keep them for a few days then a large viv might work. Anything longer, like trying to breed them might need a bit more.

If I was setting something up for breeding damsels, I would be aiming to give them as large a flight area as possible - I think a large viv would be a bit too small and crowded for them. I think something like a small greenhouse or mesh cage in sunlight would be good - I think it would need to be at least 4 ft tall but the bigger the better. A few aquariums filled with pond water and plants should provide places for them to lay. Put in loads of prey as well.

Matt
 

Tleilaxu

Arachnoprince
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Damsel flies are not that big a large viv would be fine for breeding. Dragon flies need the large spaces
 

Wade

Arachnoking
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Anybody actually done it successfully? I've heard of damselflies and dragonflies being reared in butterfly houses, but not in terrariums. I'm not saying it can't be done, but I'm not optimistic about it.

What SHOULD work and what actually DOES work are often two different things.

Wade
 

andy83

Arachnoknight
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Nov 5, 2004
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This is a picture of the second one that I have found since I've had my viv up and going. I have never seen two at the same time so as far as I know these are just still hitchhikers.

I caught him eating a fly the other day. I hope they stick around because they're nice additions to the tank.

 

Black Widow88

Arachnobaron
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Jun 8, 2007
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I never knew that people kept these as actual pets. I've caught some around my local lake in Central Park and brought them home in my bug jars and fed them house flies and fruit flies since we have alot of those lately. Then after a few days I would go back and release them.

It's fun actually. I raised butterflies too. Hopefully I'll be able to do that again some time after camp.

Black Widow88
 

dtknow

Arachnoking
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Aug 18, 2004
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Andy:

What surprises me is he/she hasn't decided to kill himself by flying endlessly into the light and then dying of exhaustion. I guess since it emerged in the viv it is used to it?

I've caught ovipositing females and had them successfully continue in captivity( a little jar with some water plants).

I think it would need to be pretty sizeable as they'd need to be able to fly around and get into tandem without obstructions. It'd also have to be evenly lit to prevent the problem I described above.
 

andy83

Arachnoknight
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Nov 5, 2004
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Well,

It does bump into the ceiling from time to time but I don't think its doing it because of the lights. It probably does it sometimes but usually it can get around pretty good and it does rest on plants. Broms seem like good spots for eggs as well.

I'm glad that these guys came up. They do seem to need more space to do their thing(as they fly). I've seen him rest on various spots in the tank. It doesn't fly constantly either so I think it is doing alright in the 40 gallon.

Also, this tank is evenly lit and the air circulates. Here is a full shot so you can get a size ratio of the last picture.
 

Wade

Arachnoking
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The fact that it's eating is encouraging to say the least!

I, too, would expect most species to bash themselves to death, but it appears to be a small species, so maybe that's key.

I hope they do well!

Wade
 

Black Widow88

Arachnobaron
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Jun 8, 2007
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Oh WOW! I never would've thought the setup would be this elaborated! I thought it would be a really big jam jar with twigs and plants and some flies. But that's amazing! How many are you keeping in that setup? 200? lol! :D And what species do you want/have at the moment?

I love the setup it looks really nice!

Black Widow88
 

andy83

Arachnoknight
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Nov 5, 2004
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This isn't even my thread but I just so happened to have some pop up recently in my dart frog vivarium. So, I figured I would chime in as there doesn't seem to be too many people that keep them.

I don't know what species I have but I'm assuming they hitched a ride off of some plants that I have put in the tank. I don't see why they wouldn't work out in there. I just hope more pop up soon so they can reproduce.

Does anybody know how long these guys live after they have matured? I have no idea...
 

Black Widow88

Arachnobaron
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Jun 8, 2007
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Not that long. Although I don't remember how long! *Consults her insect books*

Black Widow88
 
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