Milipede update

Jerry

Arachnobaron
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7868.jpg Everyone is well doing good just re worked there substrate was getting a little thin but here some pics 7871.jpg 20160724_214419.jpg 7877.jpg
 
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SlugPod

Arachnoknight
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Cute!
I need to take some pictures of my milipeds.
I know the bumblebee's but what are the other larger ones?
They're quite pretty!
 

Jerry

Arachnobaron
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Florida ivory not sure the scientific name and you should love millipedes hopefully going to get some scarlet milupedess soon to ad to my collection
 

SlugPod

Arachnoknight
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Ah I see.
They don't look like Ivory's in that picture I suppose. But I've also not seen them in person.
I had some difficulties with my scarlet's. I had them for a bit of time but then they died off.
However I have found some young scarlet's so I suppose they did well enough to breed and lay eggs.
I think I have at least four scarlet babies. Possibly more in the tank, I haven't gone through it completely to see if I Can find more yet.

I really want some Florida Ivory's. They are so pretty from what I have seen in pictures.
I'm hoping I can get some soon but not sure when exactly.
 

Jerry

Arachnobaron
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Cool I've found a fair amount of little ones in my tank not sure if there Ivory's or bumblebees have to let them get bigger to find out
 

SlugPod

Arachnoknight
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Awesome :)
I always seem to have bumblebee's in various sizes/ ages. They do really well for me.
I'm not sure what species I'd like to try and get next, there's so many cool species. I think I'd like one of the larger ones, though.
 

Jerry

Arachnobaron
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Yea deffinetly I really am fascinated with brachycybe lecontii feather millipedes the don't get very big but they make up for it in the way they look
 

SlugPod

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@Jerry
Yes they are definitely interesting looking.
I wish I could find more than just bumblebee millipedes where I live but I haven't been successful in doing so.
 

Jerry

Arachnobaron
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That sucks bumblebee s are cool but there's so many other cool ones out there to that's a bummer you can't get them online
 

SlugPod

Arachnoknight
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I love the bumblebee's, they're really pretty.
And I meant in the wild haha.
I know a few places online that sell millipedes, I just haven't been able to buy any yet.
 

Jerry

Arachnobaron
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O OK you can wild collect bumblebee s that's SWEET the only ones I've had any luck catching here are small 2 to 3 inch maybe and very thin nothing to impressive not even sure what species they are but there all over the place and are a redish Bron not to spectacular
 
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SlugPod

Arachnoknight
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Yeah they are all over the place. I can sometimes even just go out back and look under certain spots and find some. There's one place here not too far from my house actually that was just covered in them in the morning. I was thinking about going over there and collecting some just because I'm sure people try to mess with them.
I've found a FEW scarlet millipedes as well but not very many.
There's suppose to be quite a few species in Florida, I just might live in a too heavily populated city to find other species. There are a few parks here but haven't found anything at them.

But hopefully I can get another species soon to admire!
 

ErinM31

Arachnogoddess
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Cute!
I need to take some pictures of my milipeds.
I know the bumblebee's but what are the other larger ones?
They're quite pretty!
The larger millipedes in the photo are Narceus gordanus millipedes. They are an attractive and hardy millipede, even if they spend most of their time burrowed in the substrate. :)

Florida ivory not sure the scientific name and you should love millipedes hopefully going to get some scarlet milupedess soon to ad to my collection
Those are definitely not Chicobolus spinigerus / Ivory millipedes. Yours are Narceus gordanus / Smoky Oak millipedes -- one of the thickest species in the U.S. (as you can see in your photo) and endemic to Florida. Ivory millipedes can also be found in Florida (as well as the southeastern U.S. more generally) but are smaller and quite distinctive in appeared (see link below).
http://bugguide.net/node/view/42568


FYI, neither the Bumblebee (Anadenobolus monilicornis) nor Scarlet (Trigoniulus corallinus) millipedes are native to Florida but were introduced from South America and Asia, respectively. Of the many species introduced to the U.S., the Bumblebees are, IMHO, the most attractive. :)

Yea deffinetly I really am fascinated with brachycybe lecontii feather millipedes the don't get very big but they make up for it in the way they look
Agreed! They are delicate but uniquely beautiful millipedes! :happy:


the only ones I've had any luck catching here are small 2 to 3 inch maybe and very thin nothing to impressive not even sure what species they are but there all over the place and are a redish Bron not to spectacular
Would you mind posting a photo of them? I am working on collecting millipedes from all over North America and am curious to see what species you describe. :)

There's suppose to be quite a few species in Florida, I just might live in a too heavily populated city to find other species. There are a few parks here but haven't found anything at them.

But hopefully I can get another species soon to admire!
Good luck! I look forward to seeing what else you find! :) There are indeed many millipede species in Florida, but some quite specific in their habitat.
 
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SlugPod

Arachnoknight
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@ErinM31

Ah yeah I figured out they weren't Ivory's and were/ are smoky oaks. I recognized them but knew they weren't ivory's.
I'm also aware that bumblebee's and scarlet's aren't native here (there are a lot of invasive / non-native species in Florida, not just millipedes).
I've figured that a lot must live in specific areas / habitats here in Florida, and me being in a really populated area is probably part of the reason I can't find many other than the two species I have found.
I might try and go to one of the parks and walk around off the path(s) and look under any logs I can find. I typically don't bother looking around the pine trees because I know pine is one of those woods that they don't go to. I normally look around the oak trees.
If nothing else, I can buy some, but it is fun finding them in the wild too.
 

ErinM31

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@ErinM31
Ah yeah I figured out they weren't Ivory's and were/ are smoky oaks. I recognized them but knew they weren't ivory's.
I'm also aware that bumblebee's and scarlet's aren't native here (there are a lot of invasive / non-native species in Florida, not just millipedes).
Cool, just sharing as I like to know where the millipedes I keep come from and I wasn't sure how common knowledge that was (I've been studying Hoffman's 1999 list and reading the primary literature of the past few decades).
Yeah, and a lot of the introduced species are far more harmful than millipedes, which I don't think have caused any harm, unless they displacing or out-competing the natives -- hopefully not!

I've figured that a lot must live in specific areas / habitats here in Florida, and me being in a really populated area is probably part of the reason I can't find many other than the two species I have found.
I might try and go to one of the parks and walk around off the path(s) and look under any logs I can find. I typically don't bother looking around the pine trees because I know pine is one of those woods that they don't go to. I normally look around the oak trees.
If nothing else, I can buy some, but it is fun finding them in the wild too.
Yes, I agree, it is fun to find them -- the link was primarily for the benefit of @Jerry since it sounds like he has far fewer local millipedes to be found. You might search BugGuide for millipedes found in Florida as this may give you more ideas of where to look. :) I was pleasantly surprised at how many millipedes can be found in Texas, if only one knows where and WHEN to look! ;) Under logs and among hardwood leaves such as oak are always good places to look, but there may also be some millipedes in habitats that you would not expect. The Floridobolus millipedes, for instance, can be found in sandy areas with juniper and rosemary -- two plants I would not normally think to find millipedes around.
 

SlugPod

Arachnoknight
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@ErinM31

Oh no I'm glad you shared. I like to know where things come from as well.
As far as I know the only harm the millipedes have caused is infesting homes for the most part (and maybe businesses). Which for some people is not ideal, obviously. If anything I'd think they'd help with breaking down decaying leaves/plant material, which is good because then there isn't just a bunch of dead leaf matter laying around.
Kind of a shame in a way that the only species I have been able to find have been non-native species, though. It'd be nice if I could find some Ivory's or even Smoky Oak's. I was thinking of getting some Smoky Oak's next, since they're so thick-bodied. They seem really interesting and pretty.

I'll have to look at that! I wish there were more millipede species for sale online, seems like most places only have a few of the more popular / readily available species. I know there was a ban on importing them to the US, but I read it was lifted recently? I'm not sure because I haven't looked into it more yet.
I just think millipedes are really cool and an amazing species to keep, I'd love to be able to have a lot more species available. I've read that some people have issues with breeding in captivity whereas some people have no issues at all. But I digress.

That's interesting, I wouldn't think sandy areas = millipedes. I'll have to do some research to figure out good times of the year to find other species and such where I live. And just generally where to look. I'm sure I can find other species, if I just keep at it :)
 

Jerry

Arachnobaron
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Thanks for the corection on the wrong id I bought them from a local pet store they had them listed as Ivory's and I didn't really question it have had them for quit a while now and thanks for all the good info Yea as soon as I can I'll get a pic for you there really prity small but I had a few of them for a while then me and my son released them
 

SlugPod

Arachnoknight
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Ah yeah sometimes pet stores don't label their animals properly or they mislabel them. Or just call them something generic that doesn't even tell you what they are specifically, like "fancy" for example.
That's one reason why I avoid pet stores as a source for live animals. I also just don't have any good local pet stores, most are the big chain's which are so bad. There's one that's a local pet store but it's still not that great and they don't have any insects of any kind.
But I digress, I would like to see the small species that you had as well. They sound interesting nonetheless. Reddish brown is a nice colour most of the time.
 

ErinM31

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@ErinM31
Oh no I'm glad you shared. I like to know where things come from as well.
As far as I know the only harm the millipedes have caused is infesting homes for the most part (and maybe businesses). Which for some people is not ideal, obviously. If anything I'd think they'd help with breaking down decaying leaves/plant material, which is good because then there isn't just a bunch of dead leaf matter laying around.
That is strange. I wonder what is in these homes or businesses that leads to an infestation of millipedes? I would think that most would not even be able to survive in the average air-conditioned building and would die of desiccation. I know some millipedes, including another species introduced from Asia, Oxidus gracilus, infest greenhouses because the warm moist climate suits them and they feed on the manure used as fertilizer. In any case, it is at worst a nuisance, not like certain beetles which have been introduced which infest and kill native trees. :(

True, although every ecosystem has its detrivores. I thought at first there were none around here because I did not see the introduced isopods and Julid millipedes I was used to seeing around human settlements but there are millipedes of different kinds and also cockroaches such as Arenivaga bolliana which consume leaf litter. Still, as a whole I would agree that the introduction of additional detrivores such as millipedes and the isopods which are now nearly ubiquitous in North America has not been a bad thing.

Kind of a shame in a way that the only species I have been able to find have been non-native species, though. It'd be nice if I could find some Ivory's or even Smoky Oak's. I was thinking of getting some Smoky Oak's next, since they're so thick-bodied. They seem really interesting and pretty.
True, but not surprising. The non-native species were introduced by humans and many tend to spread along with them. I could find no isopods in the native forest but they can be found in abundance around buildings and neighborhoods. They may be throughout San Antonio err long with all the slash-and-burn "development" that is going on. :( I am not saddened by the isopods spreading, but by the local fauna's destruction and can only hope that the natives are able to recolonize. Otherwise, like you, people will only find the introduced species around them and that is a sad thing.

Both N. gordanus and C. spinigerus are terrific millipedes. :) From my experience, the N. gordanus are far hardier. C. spinigerus are especially nice because they are usually on top of the substrate and I am trying to find conditions to not only keep them healthy, but encourage reproduction. They are supposed to be easier than other species that I have been successful with. :confused:

I'll have to look at that! I wish there were more millipede species for sale online, seems like most places only have a few of the more popular / readily available species. I know there was a ban on importing them to the US, but I read it was lifted recently? I'm not sure because I haven't looked into it more yet.
Me too!!! There are very few dealers that have more than one or two species for sale and many native species are impossible to find, much less imports (actually, I don't believe anyone sells imported millipedes but the descendants of those who were successfully bred before imports were senselessly banned -- it is a shame that more were not established in the hobby first!). I have not heard that the ban was lifted but I HOPE that I am wrong! It is stupid, as most such laws are. Of the many introduced millipedes, not a single one was through the pet trade and besides, millipedes are harmless (not that I would excuse someone releasing a non-native pet into the wild, even if "only" for the sake of that animal).

I just think millipedes are really cool and an amazing species to keep, I'd love to be able to have a lot more species available. I've read that some people have issues with breeding in captivity whereas some people have no issues at all. But I digress.
Again, me too! :D Some species are very easy to breed in captivity, some are only easy under the right conditions, if that makes sense, while others are difficult just to keep alive in captivity, much less get to reproduce.

That's interesting, I wouldn't think sandy areas = millipedes. I'll have to do some research to figure out good times of the year to find other species and such where I live. And just generally where to look. I'm sure I can find other species, if I just keep at it :)
Indeed! Nor would I! But there are always exceptions as it is of course advantageous to be able to live where many cannot -- less competition. ;) One of the Polydesmid millipedes I keep, Harpaphe haydeniana, was stressed and constantly pacing until I added wood, needles and little cones from the Douglas Fir -- then they were quite happy. To not only tolerate but require debris from a conifer not something one expects of a millipede!

Definitely! :) I would be interested in at least knowing about (and possibly purchasing or trading for) any Spirobolids that you find. I would like to know where this millipede comes from:


I have a pair of these lovely millipedes and would like to know what they are. :) I only know that they come from Florida and are definitely Spirobolids, probably Spirobolidae. They may be a new color morph of the Narceus americanus-annularis complex, but they are smaller, quite different in color and may be too far south but I don't know even what county they are from, unfortunately.

Thanks for the corection on the wrong id I bought them from a local pet store they had them listed as Ivory's and I didn't really question it have had them for quit a while now and thanks for all the good info Yea as soon as I can I'll get a pic for you there really prity small but I had a few of them for a while then me and my son released them
Happy to help! :) It is appalling how bad some vendors are with their info! :banghead: At least C. spinigerus (Ivories) and N. gordanus (Smoky Oaks) have similar husbandry requirements! One person on this forum was sold golden Orthoporus ornatus (a large desert-adapted species from New Mexico and western Texas) as a Bumblebee millipede! o_O

Two to three inches is a good-sized millipede as far as I'm concerned! :happy: I keep several species that grow little larger than an inch in length and one that is only a few millimeters in size. :D
 

Jerry

Arachnobaron
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Well I work at a saw mill and there is a lot of wood debris that is pilled up so I know right were to look for the ones that are around here
 
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