Looking for Millipede sellers in VA.

[Nyx]

Hey guys, newbie here.

I'm hoping this is in the right section, but as the title states, I'm looking for any sellers/dealers of millipedes in Virginia. I'm from Canada where all species have been (In my opinion, wrongly) banned and they're nowhere to be found. I'll be going to Alexandria in June to visit a friend and I thought I might see if I couldn't pick some up on the way, and just hide them in something inconspicuous which I could send to myself via express mail.

The main species I'm looking for is the Giant African Millipede, as that's the one I once owned and I adored him. However, I'm open to other large species if you can recommend some, and I also wouldn't mind any info/advice on which can be put in the same enclosure.

Likewise, if this is an impossible feat, I'd appreciate if you could throw some alternative options at me. Thanks =]

 

[OrdoMallus]

Try perhaps finding some Narceus americanus? They get fairly large (I think around 6") and they are known to exist in parts of BC. So if you were trying to bring it in it could be played off as a native species and perhaps be allowed in (not sure). And I believe they aren't too hard to find in the Northern States? (please correct me if I'm wrong)

I'm also looking pretty hard for some of the A. gigas but I've kinda given up. I've tracked down some people that perviously had them and had even bred them. As well as hearing about them being offered in LPS as short at 2-3 years ago. I've pretty much tapped out my sources to try get them (I know many people going back and forth and constantly shipping in and out of the states with reptiles and etc, but arent willing to take the risk trying to import them and get themselves into trouble just for some bugs)

Sorry I dont have many answers for you but yeah, good luck,
Layne

 

[Nyx]

Thanks for the suggestion, I'll see if I can't find some of those nearby.

It really is ridiculous that people can freely ship and own such a huge array of reptiles, even dangerous ones, but they won't allow us to have something as harmless as a millipede It's not like they'd be likely to survive Canada's some times insanely cold winters were they to get out into the wild.

Someone linked me to a site once where they were selling A.gigas and various other species, and this was hardly more than a year or so ago. Are people really stopping the breeding and distributing of these guys, or what? I could understand not importing them (I hate the idea) but captive-bred millis shouldn't be of concern..

 

[OrdoMallus]

Well, its not so much that the CFIA has a problem with them, its more or less agroculture Canada saying that it "could" be a pest therefore it should be banned. Its more or less to cover their butts just incase. Its more or less that they aren't willing to spend any research or money into finding out what is able to live here and what isn't. Because there has been studies done and there are many inverts such as phasmids and mantids, etc that have made it into the country and become pests. That's largely why a lot of the phasmids are banned because they can survive winter conditions. I mean we're talking about myriapods but same ideas can apply.

I don't agree with it either but we do have free reign of what arachnids, scorpions and pedes we can bring in. Basicly anything that won't affect acroculture is legal.

Layne

Edit: also the reason why most of the predatory stuff like Mantids are banned is because they don't want it to affect them native bee populations, etc.