Dream insect/invertebrate/arthropod?

[mantisfan101]

As far as insects go, Goliathus beetles - which until recently were a pipe dream in the US. 3 species (goliatus, cacicus, and regius) have been made legal to own here, but I can't seem to anyone selling them here yet.

If you go on beetleforum I believe @BeetleExperienc was selling some. He’d be the one to talk to though don’t expect the larvae to be cheap; these guys can cost quite a bit.

 

[Hisserdude]

Well I'm in love with the weirder African Perisphaerinae genera like Pilema, Compsagis, Cyrtotria, Zuluia, especially Pilema, #burrowroachisbae. So if anyone's got leads on those, lemme know!

As far as roaches go I'd also love Melyroidea magnifica, the blue morph of Pseudoglomeris magnifica, Gyna gloriosa, Panchlora sp. "Blue", Panchlora regalis, Eustegasta buprestoides, Thliptoblatta obtrita, (which I've only seen in an old line drawing), Eushelfordia pica, Homalosilpha kryzhanovskii, Hormetica sexnotata, Geoscapheus woodwardi, and many more I can't think of right now...

As for other inverts, I wouldn't mind seeing some Hemilepistus in person, or Manticora, T.seladonia, Cosmoderus femoralis, Titanophilus, and again, many more I can't think of on the spot...

 

[Bob Lee]

Giant African termites

 

[BepopCola]

Giant isopods. They're large, can kill sharks and have the face of a supervillain. Would be amazing to have these in a large tall tank (like a large living room wall), throw in live fish to feed them, and watch them go about their isopod life from your couch.

Unfortunately I am not a millionaire.

I'll have to say giant isopods too!
I got some pillow versions to hold me over

 

[Rique]

As far as insects go, Goliathus beetles - which until recently were a pipe dream in the US. 3 species (goliatus, cacicus, and regius) have been made legal to own here, but I can't seem to anyone selling them here yet.

I agree with you! I too have been wondering where to find a source here in the US for Goliathus.

As to my dream rhinos...I would have to go with any and all Dynastinae south of the border, including hercules hercules, satanas, and neptunus. I wish these were legalized.

 

[SonsofArachne]

As to my dream rhinos...I would have to go with any and all Dynastinae south of the border, including hercules hercules, satanas, and neptunus. I wish these were legalized.

I'm raising Dynastes tityus and granti larvae now, but there's nothing like hercules hercules. I saw some hercules on ebay being brown boxed from Thailand, and I have to admit I was tempted. But good sense prevailed, so I sighed and moved on.

 

[hiveM1ND]

i know it would be difficult and i cant keep them as i live in the US but i would love to keep giant pillipedes, as they are very cute.

 

[Rique]

I'm raising Dynastes tityus and granti larvae now, but there's nothing like hercules hercules. I saw some hercules on ebay being brown boxed from Thailand, and I have to admit I was tempted. But good sense prevailed, so I sighed and moved on.

Lol, I completely understand! I was doing the same earlier today...it’s very tempting and very disheartening. D. granti is the closest we will get. Possibly in our lifetime. Especially with ecological constraints factoring on output of our agriculture, de-regulating the exotic beetles are at the bottom of the USDA agenda. Perhaps one of these days I’ll improvise a method to make super-major larvae and adults, by supplementing the closed containers with 100% pure oxygen via a hole or two drilled through the plastic wall of said container. I then would insert the tube or cannula through the hole and increase the flow to several liters per minute of pure oxygen at a constant rate. This would mimic or replicate the higher oxygen-rich output existing in the forests during the Pleistocene...thereby increasing the growth potential of D. granti to a size equivalent to hercules hercules. To my understanding, controlled tests were conducted in laboratory whereby the size of insects were increased exponentially by a similar method. I’m under the impression that eggs and larvae would have to be exposed to high concentrations of oxygen over successive generations for there to be stable genetic modifications. [Inverse physiological changes - respiratory and circulatory - are noted in people living at higher elevations...]

As to my wanting to import several beautiful larvae of exotic Dynastinae - not to mention Megasoma - I’m obliged to pass on the offer, because I’m also not enthusiastic about getting into issues with the USDA. But believe me, I know those exotic Dynastinae would THRIVE on the substrate I would give them...

 

[The Mantis Menagerie]

i know it would be difficult and i cant keep them as i live in the US but i would love to keep giant pillipedes, as they are very cute.

Actually, Zoosphaerium neptunus were one of the easier species for me to put on my permits. If anyone could master minimizing stress during importation, then these might might have a future in the US hobby.

 

[MTA]

I would love to own any of the Haementeria leeches because they're so unique being large leeches with a proboscis, since none of their relatives get even close to their size as far as I know. H. ghilianii would be my most wanted of the genus of course but I would settle for any of them.

 

[mantisfan101]

Actually, Zoosphaerium neptunus were one of the easier species for me to put on my permits. If anyone could master minimizing stress during importation, then these might might have a future in the US hobby.

If they were to enter the hobby would we need permits to keep them?

 

[The Mantis Menagerie]

If they were to enter the hobby would we need permits to keep them?

Yes, this is not a species the USDA would grant commercial biological supply permits for. Every seller and every buyer would need a permit.

 

[Sarkhan42]

I’ve had the opportunity to keep one of my major dreams of Choeradodis rhomboidea (though still trying to breed the damn things ) but I’d still love to get some rhombicollis eventually. Easily my favorite Choeradodis as appearances go.

 

[Arthroverts]

It took me a little while, but I finally got around to checking this thread out. I'm done for; like I needed more inverts with insane colors .

Thanks a lot y'all .

Arthroverts

 

[Arthroverts]

@SamanthaMarikian, do ya see this?

Thanks,

Arthroverts

 

[Arthroverts]

Gonna stick them under a spoiler because there's quite a few and I tend to rant an awful lot about animals that I wish I could have.

​

Spoiler: Abandon hope, all ye that enter here.

Pheretima sieboldii​

Let's face it, most earthworms are boring. They do their part in the ecosystem but apart from that they're very mudane. They wiggle, and eat dirt, and produce tons of tiny little worms that do the same, but then I found out that somewhere in the world there exists giant blue earthworms and I immediately fell in love. There are similar worms that live in Australia, but since exported animals is usually next to impossible, here's hoping that these guys can maybe end up in the hobby someday. They're from Southeast Asia, and they look stunning.​

Platymma tweediei​

These guys look like volcanoes. Very slow, slimy volcanoes. The underside of their bodies are a beautiful, solid orange colour. They are incredibly hard to find within the hobby and they don't fare so well in captivity, though some people have had some success in rearing them. I hope we can raise a population some day, but people don't seem too interested in snails, unlike other inverts.

Dactylotum bicolor​

Grasshoppers are wonderful little things but the colours on this critter make me drool. It's like someone genuinely managed to bring a drawing to life, one they made out of ink and watercolour paint. I know crickets, locust and grasshoppers get a bad rep due to how noisy, manic and destructive they can be but, at least they look good doing it!

Polyzosteria mitchelli​

Again, they live in Australia, so I doubt I'll ever own one, but they are gorgeous creatures. They're decently sized cockroaches that have a lovely subdued turquoise coloured chitin with bands of yellow or cream. Their legs shimmer too, kinda prickly looking but they look very gentle. The pattern on their backs are mesmerizing, I could stare at it for hours. They're quite chunky too, you can definitely see all of their defining features.

Chrysis ignita​

Is that not one of the coolest binomial names ever? These guys are native to where I live, which surprised me an awful lot, but they are apparently now somewhat rare to spot here in the UK. I missed the season anyway to hunt for these beauties, here's hoping I'll be more successful next year. I'll have to look up and speculate how to replicate their needs, I can't imagine a cuckoo wasp will be straightforward to look after.

There are a ton of others but, I'll stop here before I list every single one.

TL;DR I like a lot of brightly coloured inverts but a lot of them are a pipe dream.

I actually found someone selling Platymma tweediei in the UK; I was sorely tempted to buy from him, but he didn't want to do it legally (i.e getting proper permits, considering they are endangered). Argh! Ah well, one day maybe...

Thanks,

Arthroverts

 

[SonsofArachne]

I actually found someone selling Platymma tweediei in the UK

Last year there was someone offering these in the classifieds, would even ship to the US. I almost emailed him to say "stop temping me,you jerk!". Seriously though, in the US that would a triple - brown boxing, importing land snails, and a endangered species to top it off. Even if I were the type to brown box, that would still scare me away

 

[Arthroverts]

@SonsofArachne, we are probably talking about the same person then. I originally discovered the ad on Roach Forum; I even messaged the guy to see if it was legal for him to ship to me. At the time I wasn't as informed on importing invertebrates. How the times have changed, ha ha.
I was also worried about their care, as apparently they are very sensitive. I didn't want to spend $100-$200+ on these snails just to watch them die.

Oh well, I'll dream of when exotic land gastropods are legalized. Platymma tweediei, Achatina fulica "White Jade", and all the other species I have yet to discover but desperately need...

Thanks,

Arthroverts

 

[SonsofArachne]

we are probably talking about the same person then

I was thinking that as well. So few people in the classifieds here are brown boxers that the ones who are tend to stand out. Not like FB, where brown boxers are everywhere. For instance - Someone in se Asia posted a clip of his Scolopendra cataracta semi-aquatic set up. I commented that I wished we could get those in the US. He replied that could ship me some no problem and to dm him - just like that, right out in the open. I didn't bother to reply.

 

[Arthroverts]

Yes, most sellers on here are established and are usually well-known; anybody new is immediately researched and scrutinized.
I found a really awesome store in Hong Kong with a lot of stuff I want; I mean, stuff in my top 5, 10, and 20 list. I quickly messaged them and asked if they would be willing to legally ship via Reptile Express, and if so, my associates and I (which I do have in my local invertebrate club) would likely be able to place a substantial order. They said they only shipped via DHL, but were wishing that I would order! Totally passed by the fact that I wanted to do stuff legally. Which is another reason I don't use FB; I can already find stuff I want that I can't have without it .

Thanks,

Arthroverts