Need help setting up harlequin flower beetle larva bin today

[Jimbob]

I just got some larva in this morning. I ordered some substrate for them too, just because this is my first beetle breeding attempt and I'm hoping to do it right, especially since these guys are a little pricey. Problem is, substrate isn't here yet so I have to set something up with what I have right now.

I have coco fiber, live oak leaf litter, and rotten wood I got from outside(either from an oak or maple...). I also have sphagnum moss, horticultural charcoal, soil, and cork bark if any of that helps.

I was going to use an airtight bin with a small ventilation hole or two to keep humidity up.

If anyone could help me make sure I put the substrate together correctly today I'd really appreciate it! Right now they are all in a deli cup of substrate that they came in.

Thanks in advance

 

[MasterOogway]

If these are Gymnetis caseyi/thula then your substrate for grubs should be composed almost entirely of shredded (potato flake consistency) aged, decomposed Oak (Quercus) leaves. These leaves should have been on the ground for ~6 months and appear white and crumble easily. Fresh oak leaves are not really suitable. You don't need much else for this species. You can add some coco fiber to give the substrate some substance, but you don't *need* anything else. I do offer mine some banana, and also a little bit of flake soil and 'zoo doo' which is composted herbivore waste. But you should be fine with just oak leaves as their primary food. Vent the lid with several rows of holes; I also drill a line of small holes around the base of the bin. Also bear in mind these are a permitted species, so ideally you have a PPQ 526 permit.

 

[Jimbob]

Hmmm, atm I just have a bag of oak leaves from Josh's frogs I bought like a year ago, they're brown, but not white.

Should I just keep them in the deli cup until the substrate arrives? Would it hurt to add the leaves i have and rotten wood to the substrate? They seem to decay pretty fast in my enclosures.

Thank you for replying

 

[The Mantis Menagerie]

Also bear in mind these are a permitted species, so ideally you have a PPQ 526 permit.

This is true. Most people are unaware of this fact, but I have the permits for this species. The airtight bin is probably similar to the ones I use.

I have seen Josh’s Frogs’ leaves, and they look like undecayed, dried leaves. You will want to find some outside that have decayed.

 

[mantisfan101]

This is true. Most people are unaware of this fact, but I have the permits for this species. The airtight bin is probably similar to the ones I use.

I have seen Josh’s Frogs’ leaves, and they look like undecayed, dried leaves. You will want to find some outside that have decayed.

Is the permit required to transport them across state lines? Also, what about D. tityus? I have 3 males I want to get rid of but I don't want to do anything illegal and only plan on giving them away to members within the same state that I live in.

 

[The Mantis Menagerie]

Is the permit required to transport them across state lines? Also, what about D. tityus? I have 3 males I want to get rid of but I don't want to do anything illegal and only plan on giving them away to members within the same state that I live in.

Yes, importation and interstate movement of Cetoniinae (except the three Goliathus), Dynastinae, Lucanidae, and Tenebrionidae requires a USDA-APHIS permit. If your beetles were originally from another state, then intrastate movements require permits as well.

 

[mantisfan101]

Yes, importation and interstate movement of Cetoniinae (except the three Goliathus), Dynastinae, Lucanidae, and Tenebrionidae requires a USDA-APHIS permit. If your beetles were originally from another state, then intrastate movements require permits as well.

I got the beetles from a female I caught near my house aand I plan on giving them to people who live eithin my state so I think I’m good.

 

[BepopCola]

Yes, importation and interstate movement of Cetoniinae (except the three Goliathus), Dynastinae, Lucanidae, and Tenebrionidae requires a USDA-APHIS permit. If your beetles were originally from another state, then intrastate movements require permits as well.

I had no idea. It's nice to learn new things.

 

[Cyber Locc]

This is true. Most people are unaware of this fact, but I have the permits for this species. The airtight bin is probably similar to the ones I use.

I have seen Josh’s Frogs’ leaves, and they look like undecayed, dried leaves. You will want to find some outside that have decayed.

Link to this anywhere? There is literally ZERO mention or documentation of this anywhere but this thread. On top of this species being sold on dozens of sites. As someone in the snail hobby, Permitted insects dont fly very long being sold on large commercial sites without being shutdown, in what I have seen.

Especially large well known ones, which a few that carrys the species are.

 

[The Mantis Menagerie]

Link to this anywhere? There is literally ZERO mention or documentation of this anywhere but this thread. On top of this species being sold on dozens of sites. As someone in the snail hobby, Permitted insects dont fly very long being sold on large commercial sites without being shutdown, in what I have seen.

Especially large well known ones, which a few that carrys the species are.

The USDA does not enforce the regulations on most pet insects. I had to get the permits for basic species in order to maintain complete compliance in order to also have permits for species such as Thyropygus pachyurus. I have some links here: www.themantismenagerie.com/usda-draft.

 

[Cyber Locc]

The USDA does not enforce the regulations on most pet insects. I had to get the permits for basic species in order to maintain complete compliance in order to also have permits for species such as Thyropygus pachyurus. I have some links here: www.themantismenagerie.com/usda-draft.

Interesting.

So the USDA has quite the mess going on there, by your link to the exclusions.

E. javanica are not excluded, but E. chopardi are, good luck telling them apart lol. We know that javanica are bigger, but can you tell that on a post for sale? Would a run of the mill employee notice, not likely.

Then there is the fact, the species are extremely similar. In location, in needs to survive ect. If there is zero risk accessed of one then there is of the other, and finding true chopardi in the hobby is difficult.

So the USDA, is both uniformed, and incomplete in anything they do, Yep defiantly a Govt Agency .

 

[The Mantis Menagerie]

Interesting.

So the USDA has quite the mess going on there, by your link to the exclusions.

E. javanica are not excluded, but E. chopardi are, good luck telling them apart lol. We know that javanica are bigger, but can you tell that on a post for sale? Would a run of the mill employee notice, not likely.

Then there is the fact, the species are extremely similar. In location, in needs to survive ect. If there is zero risk accessed of one then there is of the other, and finding true chopardi in the hobby is difficult.

So the USDA, is both uniformed, and incomplete in anything they do, Yep defiantly a Govt Agency .

What about Paratropes lateralis? It is used as a synonym for Blatta lateralis, but apparently, there is actually a Paratropes lateralis that is a rare species from the tropical Americas. This species is non-existent in captivity, so the list of referring to Blatta.

 

[MasterOogway]

Link to this anywhere? There is literally ZERO mention or documentation of this anywhere but this thread. On top of this species being sold on dozens of sites. As someone in the snail hobby, Permitted insects dont fly very long being sold on large commercial sites without being shutdown, in what I have seen.

Especially large well known ones, which a few that carrys the species are.

All cetoniinae require permits, I will confirm. I can show you my permit that has to have them on it if you'd like. Or I can direct you to the any of a few dozen other insect zoos that also have to have permits to keep them. WE get inspected regularly. I can't speak for a normal hobbyist, but I know confiscations have happened in the past. I would suspect though that under our current extremely anti-environment government the funding for this sort of enforcement is non-existent.