hello all! new cherry leg owner

echostatic

Arachnosquire
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hello everybody, i just got a cherry leg from botar, my first centipede, and now i have a feeding question... its 1.5" long so its young, how often do they eat for best health? isnt it weekly? and how much? id be feeding small crickets that are now shared between it and my bearded dragon.

one other thing i was wondering about is if there is a thread here or anywhere else about people who have been bitten by their centipedes, just for reference. id like to know exactly what happens even though i intend to be as careful as possible.

its good to be here
 

Mr. Mordax

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Here's a link to the bite reports -- scroll down for centipedes (you're going to need a scientific name; common names are virtually useless here ;)).

Weekly ought to be OK for feeding. If it looks skinny feed more often and if it looks fat feed it less often. If it readily attacks its prey then you know it was hungry. :D If prey goes ignored for more than 24 hours then it's safe to remove.

Welcome to the boards!
 

echostatic

Arachnosquire
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Here's a link to the bite reports -- scroll down for centipedes (you're going to need a scientific name; common names are virtually useless here ;)).

Weekly ought to be OK for feeding. If it looks skinny feed more often and if it looks fat feed it less often. If it readily attacks its prey then you know it was hungry. :D If prey goes ignored for more than 24 hours then it's safe to remove.

Welcome to the boards!
ah thanks, thats what i was looking for. fine, ill go by scientific names... its just that "Pinchy the Cherry Leg" sounds a little better than "Pinchy the Scolopendra subspinipes" heh... those bite reports sound NASTY. ive read other bite reports but still...good to know about the feeding too, thank you. but ive never had a centipede, and i dunno what kind of girth these things are supposed to have.
 

Mr. Mordax

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Here's a fat juvenile:


If they're round, it usually means they're a li'l tubby. :D

Here's a more or less "healthy" girth for an adult:
 

echostatic

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oh thanks! man that one is huge in comparison to the other. i guess ill try feeding one cricket a week and see how he responds as i increase that over time, until he stops eating them all. yes im going to assume pinchy is a he.
 

echostatic

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hey... can/do these things have blue heads? i never got a clear look at mine until now, and it has a red body with red legs but a shiny blue head.
 

beetleman

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yes that sounds like a juvie to me,does the body have black bands aswell?
 

echostatic

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i think so... id have to see again. im not sure where its hiding at. i caught it out once at night, but it ran and hid in a hole. do they lose the blue coloration as they grow?
 

SouthernStyle

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i think so... id have to see again. im not sure where its hiding at. i caught it out once at night, but it ran and hid in a hole. do they lose the blue coloration as they grow?

Some species do, (last I checked) and some dont. I have a couple pede's that a friend of mine sent me from Hawaii, Seems to me that they still retain a bit of the blue in the legs, but not as drastic as the juvie's....here's a couple pix, just for the fun of it... And they could be two seperate species, I'm not 100% sure, but the coloration is awesome...

The Juvie


The Adults
 

SouthernStyle

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wow... that juvie is beautiful! those legs and body are amazing...
I dont think that I can get them over here from Hawaii again...It took an arm and a leg to get them the first time:wall: But I MIGHT end up trying...We'll just have to see ;)
 

beetleman

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in the malaysian cherry the babies will loose the blueish color on the head,my female had babies awhile ago,she passed on:( sold the babies except 1,it's about 3 1/2 " now,the body is red/black bands/head is red also,and the legs are red ofcourse:)
 

beetleman

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I dont think that I can get them over here from Hawaii again...It took an arm and a leg to get them the first time:wall: But I MIGHT end up trying...We'll just have to see ;)
yeah, about 4yrs back i had a friend that used to get those from hawaii also,i had a bunch of them at that time,very cool pedes! since then couldn't get anymore,which i figured.i kept them for a long time too,very hardy,then i traded them off:( but the indo blacktipped(i have 1 female) looks very much like the hawaii ones,could be the same sp.just a diff. local? awesome pedes never the less.
 

beetleman

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Some species do, (last I checked) and some dont. I have a couple pede's that a friend of mine sent me from Hawaii, Seems to me that they still retain a bit of the blue in the legs, but not as drastic as the juvie's....here's a couple pix, just for the fun of it... And they could be two seperate species, I'm not 100% sure, but the coloration is awesome...

The Juvie


The Adults
oh yeah, the female blacktip had babies and they looked exactly like those babies,very strikeing as babies:clap:
 

echostatic

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i saw it wandering for the 2nd time just now! and just to confirm yes black stripes on a red body with red legs and a shiny blue head. its so beautiful... and ive seen where it hides too :)
 

echostatic

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also, in retrospect, i suppose it would have been better to put it in something a little smaller than a 29g long aquarium for the time being...
 
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