Firefly larvae care

[arachnoherp]

Hey all, so i have succesfully hatched some firefly eggs and the larva are all together in a small mass. I will attempt to feed them in a few days and ill probably try a pre crushed snail however my question is are they cannibalistic and if so how should i seperate them?

 

[chanda]

Congratulations! I sure wish I could get those where I live! I haven't seen real, live fireflies since I was a kid!

While I have never raised them myself, I have heard that they will cannibalize - which is not that surprising, as it seems like most predatory insects and arachnids will do the same, though some are certainly a lot worse than others!

What I've read is to keep them in separate enclosures (like small deli cups or condiment cups, switching to larger cups as they grow) with moist dirt and peat moss. Feed them prekilled/chopped earthworms, snails, or insects daily and mist the soil as needed to maintain moisture. (It should be just slightly moist, not drippy or swampy.)

 

[mantisfan101]

If you’re talking about phengodidae sp. they specialize in millipedes I believe.

 

[chanda]

If you’re talking about phengodidae sp. they specialize in millipedes I believe.

Just curious - why would you assume Phengodidae and not Lampyridae?

 

[mantisfan101]

Just curious - why would you assume Phengodidae and not Lampyridae?

I’ve never really heard of anyone keeping lamypridae long term since most people just keep them momentarily and set them free right after. Plus phengodidae are usually more commonly kept based off of my basic knowledge than lamypridae as well.

 

[arachnoherp]

If you’re talking about phengodidae sp. they specialize in millipedes I believe.

I actually narrowed the sp down to pyractomena based off of the female who layed them. I captured her and the only reason i kept her was because i knew she was a female so i kept her till she laid eggs and then i released her.

 

[arachnoherp]

Congratulations! I sure wish I could get those where I live! I haven't seen real, live fireflies since I was a kid!

While I have never raised them myself, I have heard that they will cannibalize - which is not that surprising, as it seems like most predatory insects and arachnids will do the same, though some are certainly a lot worse than others!

What I've read is to keep them in separate enclosures (like small deli cups or condiment cups, switching to larger cups as they grow) with moist dirt and peat moss. Feed them prekilled/chopped earthworms, snails, or insects daily and mist the soil as needed to maintain moisture. (It should be just slightly moist, not drippy or swampy.)

Thanks! If you are wanting a few to try keepimg you are more then welcome to have a few. I will be attempting to seperate them tonight but i may let them have their first meal together first.

 

[Mirandarachnid]

Awesome!

I had the fortune of finding a Pleotomus sp. larva in the past.

I fed it snails, I did not crush them, I just dropped them in the enclosure. It ended up molting, so I assume it hunted them.

Unfortunately, I did not realize how ferocious isopods could be, so things ended badly. I am still very upset about that.

Pictures?

 

[dragonfire1577]

Offer a variety of soft bodied prey and see what they eat. I'm definitely interested in pictures and updates.