Orthoporus ornatus advice

mossloft

Arachnosquire
Joined
Apr 24, 2018
Messages
78
I'm new to keeping this species, and it's my first millipede. I'm especially antsy due to the untimely death of my Ivory (I'm not sure what killed it, so I'm worrying about every little thing.)

I know there are posts discussing this, but it's a bit hard for me to digest everything at once and separate experiments from proven advice (things you can add as food and such), so I was wondering if anyone was willing to share their experience and what works for them! I'm wondering if I should buy substrate from bugsincyberspace or stick with the coconut fiber/leaves I'm using. I want to make sure he's getting the best nutrients- everything he needs, at least!
I'm also concerned about moisture levels. The enclosure I have has no holes (it's the plastic one from bugsincyberspace), for reference. I'm not sure how much i should spray, or how to make sure the substrate is damp all the way through.
 

Arthroverts

Arachnoking
Joined
Jul 11, 2016
Messages
2,462
The substrate from Bugs In Cyberspace is excellent, although it gets depleted quickly when keeping a lot of millipedes (but you only have one, so that shouldn't be a problem).
I would suggest you add more stuff (rotting wood, aspen shavings, compost, etc.) than just leaves and coco fiber though if you decide to stick with what you already have. While that can sustain a millipede, they really do best when there is plenty of rotting leaves/wood and a good substrate available.

For a lot of great info on making substrate (and everything else to do with millipedes) I would suggest you check out this website by @SDCPs: http://petmillipede.weebly.com/

With substrate, feel it. If its moist all the way through, your golden. If its dry on top, mist it till its moist again. Another good indication with coco fiber is the color; a light brown/tan shows when its dry, and when it turns a dark brown you know its wet.
With completely closed enclosures by the way, make sure to open it at least once a week. I found out the hard way that millipedes don't do very well in completely sealed enclosures for long stretches of time.

Hope this helps,

Arthroverts
 

mossloft

Arachnosquire
Joined
Apr 24, 2018
Messages
78
The substrate from Bugs In Cyberspace is excellent, although it gets depleted quickly when keeping a lot of millipedes (but you only have one, so that shouldn't be a problem).
I would suggest you add more stuff (rotting wood, aspen shavings, compost, etc.) than just leaves and coco fiber though if you decide to stick with what you already have. While that can sustain a millipede, they really do best when there is plenty of rotting leaves/wood and a good substrate available.

For a lot of great info on making substrate (and everything else to do with millipedes) I would suggest you check out this website by @SDCPs: http://petmillipede.weebly.com/

With substrate, feel it. If its moist all the way through, your golden. If its dry on top, mist it till its moist again. Another good indication with coco fiber is the color; a light brown/tan shows when its dry, and when it turns a dark brown you know its wet.
With completely closed enclosures by the way, make sure to open it at least once a week. I found out the hard way that millipedes don't do very well in completely sealed enclosures for long stretches of time.

Hope this helps,

Arthroverts
Thank you so much! I heavily misted his enclosure and he seems to be doing a lot better!! It was only just a while ago that I realized it was practically dry!
I went out and got some rotting wood, it's from a park, but it's in a sort of secluded area off the side of the road and seems to be healthy with lichen growing on it (hopefully that means there are less pollutants?). Do you know if I should bake the wood if I just break off small pieces to put in the enclosure, or should I allow it to stay as is. I don't really have anything else alive in the tank but my milli. I'm mainly worried about nematodes.
 

Arthroverts

Arachnoking
Joined
Jul 11, 2016
Messages
2,462
Always happy to help :).
Yes, leaving millipedes to dry out (even desert species) is probably the number one killer of millipedes outside of not giving them the proper food.

I'd say if its got lichen growing on it, that's about as good as it gets because lichen is very sensitive to substandard conditions or chemicals (even unclean air can kill them). Does it have other creatures eating it? If so, then your usually good. However, you want to try and collect as far from roads/human habitation as possible to avoid the smog/runoff.

Bake it at around 200F-250F for 30-45 minutes (some people go to 2+ hours but I've found that's not necessary). If you bake it at really high temps (400F+) it seems to ruin the wood for some reason. The idea is not to sterilize it, but rather rid it of all pests (like nematodes and pincher bugs/earwigs). You still want that bacteria that's in the wood.

Hope this helps,

Arthroverts
 

mossloft

Arachnosquire
Joined
Apr 24, 2018
Messages
78
Always happy to help :).
Yes, leaving millipedes to dry out (even desert species) is probably the number one killer of millipedes outside of not giving them the proper food.

I'd say if its got lichen growing on it, that's about as good as it gets because lichen is very sensitive to substandard conditions or chemicals (even unclean air can kill them). Does it have other creatures eating it? If so, then your usually good. However, you want to try and collect as far from roads/human habitation as possible to avoid the smog/runoff.

Bake it at around 200F-250F for 30-45 minutes (some people go to 2+ hours but I've found that's not necessary). If you bake it at really high temps (400F+) it seems to ruin the wood for some reason. The idea is not to sterilize it, but rather rid it of all pests (like nematodes and pincher bugs/earwigs). You still want that bacteria that's in the wood.

Hope this helps,

Arthroverts
Yes, it does! I've heard of people wrapping it in tinfoil after soaking it in water and then baking it, should I do that? I don't want to burn my house down, lol.
 

Arthroverts

Arachnoking
Joined
Jul 11, 2016
Messages
2,462
Not necessary, but you can do that if you are really worried. Unless you have the heat on high and have really dry pieces (which they shouldn't be if their rotting), they won't burn.
You can also boil them in a pot of water for a little while, but I haven't done that myself.

Thanks,

Arthroverts
 

mossloft

Arachnosquire
Joined
Apr 24, 2018
Messages
78
Not necessary, but you can do that if you are really worried. Unless you have the heat on high and have really dry pieces (which they shouldn't be if their rotting), they won't burn.
You can also boil them in a pot of water for a little while, but I haven't done that myself.

Thanks,

Arthroverts
Nice! One more thing: My dad suggested only breaking off pieces at a time; if I were to do that would I bake them for shorter periods of time? And is it recommended that I do that, or should I just bake the entire piece of wood? And should I place it on top of tinfoil, at the least? (Sorry for all of the questions, I'm SUPER new to this!)
 

Arthroverts

Arachnoking
Joined
Jul 11, 2016
Messages
2,462
How big is your piece of wood? It all depends on how much you need at the time; you can break off pieces and then cook them, or cook the whole thing all at once if you have space. I prefer the latter, so that way if I have an emergency I can just use the wood at will, but if you prefer you can break pieces off and cook them. Just be warned that if you go for the former make sure to secure the non-cooked pieces, as otherwise you may have insects and other creatures crawling around your house, ha ha.

I put tinfoil over a baking pan, and then place the wood on top. While I guess you could in theory cook smaller pieces for shorter periods of time, I really think that 30+ minutes is what you should aim for just to be absolutely safe.

Thanks,

Arthroverts
 

mossloft

Arachnosquire
Joined
Apr 24, 2018
Messages
78
How big is your piece of wood? It all depends on how much you need at the time; you can break off pieces and then cook them, or cook the whole thing all at once if you have space. I prefer the latter, so that way if I have an emergency I can just use the wood at will, but if you prefer you can break pieces off and cook them. Just be warned that if you go for the former make sure to secure the non-cooked pieces, as otherwise you may have insects and other creatures crawling around your house, ha ha.

I put tinfoil over a baking pan, and then place the wood on top. While I guess you could in theory cook smaller pieces for shorter periods of time, I really think that 30+ minutes is what you should aim for just to be absolutely safe.

Thanks,

Arthroverts
Thank you so much for your help! I'm cooking mine right now! It's pretty big, but I figure I can store it away for when I need it!
 
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