What invert should I get (best pet invert)

[NecroticVenom]

Wait I thought a.gigas was only illegal to import inside the US from other countries. And I was not aware dynastes need permits. (I live in Texas so it might be different)

I think I’ll get a mantis
What species would be best for a beginner?
Ghost, giant Asian, devils flower (just kidding but how I wish)

 

[Scorpiobsession]

Reasons Why Dubia Roaches (B. Dubia) Cannot Infest Homes:

There are only 4 species (German, American, Australian, and Oriental) out of 4500 (0.09%) species of cockroaches that can infest. Because of this all of the other species get a bad representation. They're from Central and South America and they have been known to breed at 70*F though they won't be prolific if they are under 90*F. Dubia roaches cannot climb smooth surfaces nor can they fly (the males have wings that they can use to control their decent if they fall). This makes it virtually impossible for them to escape, let alone enough to breed. Also when buying feeders most if not all are male since the breeders will keep the females to breed to achieve a 1:7-9 ratio of males to females. This means that even if you dumped the entire container of them in your house then you likely wouldn't find a single offspring. There has not been a single reported infestation of them in the US or other mid-temperature countries. If you let out hundreds in a hot area then it would be possible for them to infest if a female got pregnant and somehow found enough food to survive for a long time and there is enough space that the babies wouldn't get eaten by the adults. Therefore it is essentially impossible for them to infest. Anyways they're a slow enough breeder that if perfect conditions were achieved (for example in Brazil) then it would take decades until they reproduced enough that you could find one if you tried in an hour. Even then a few well placed traps would wipe out the "infestation".


As for mantids a few species you could get are Chinese, Ghost, African, Giant Shield. That's all I can think of but I'm sure that @MrGhostMantis could list a few more and @goliathusdavid could tell you if you need permits.

 

[NecroticVenom]

Whoa

I would love to keep atta texana but unless I can keep them in the garage I don’t think I can

 

[Poonjab]

Ant farm.

 

[Snailientologist]

Texas has some cool gastropods you could look into.

 

[NecroticVenom]

A caught a big (big to me) slug around 2 months ago.... and then it laid eggs...I put it back

If I got another should I freeze the eggs, Or release them?

 

[MrGhostMantis]

I think I’ll get a mantis
What species would be best for a beginner?
Ghost, giant Asian, devils flower (just kidding but how I wish)

Finally a beginner who knows devils flowers are BOT for beginners! I’ll be selling both ghosts and giant Asians in the next few months

Haha, jk no need to buy from me but ghosts and giant Asians are fantastic!

Oh, I can list plenty more species if needed by the way...

 

[Scorpiobsession]

If I got another should I freeze the eggs, Or release them?

That depends: A) Is it legal to do either B) Is it an invasive species C) Is it legal to keep them and hatch them D) If C is yes why are you still reading this

I just asked my parents and absolutely no breeding because of “blah blah blah blah cuz they said so”

What if you agree (get it in writing) that if you get eggs you'll put them in the outside or the freezer. Buy an incubator and name it outside or freezer.

 

[MrGhostMantis]

What if you agree (get it in writing) that if you get eggs you'll put them in the outside or the freezer. Buy an incubator and name it outside or freezer.

No way they will notice that...I know mine wouldn’t.

 

[NecroticVenom]

What if you agree (get it in writing) that if you get eggs you'll put them in the outside or the freezer. Buy an incubator and name it outside or freezer.

I have already done stuff like this...
Didn’t go well

They said after this no more inverts... but I also love reptilesss

 

[vounti]

You might want to give a try to Gromphadorhina portentosa. These animals are fascinating to observe, you can handle them and they don't require difficult care.
Since their reproduction is very slow, they won't infest a house. Also they're a bit picky IME so they wouldn't feedon anything left in your house.

Achatina sp are also cool if you are interested in snails.

What about phasmids ?

There is a ton of inverts you can handle. Research and ENJOY !

 

[Scorpiobsession]

I just thought of this, you could get a leech. I have one in a jar on my desk swimming around as I type this. They sound silly but they're actually pretty cool to watch.

 

[goliathusdavid]

I see that I have been called in for legality .

On Dynastes and other native rhino beetles: yes, they will require permits for any sort of interstate movement. The only way to get around this is to collect or buy in your state (though I believe most rhino beetles have restricted collection from the wild). This also applies to pretty much every other native beetle in the US - even Asbolus species. Exotic beetles are almost all going to require permits and containment facilities (with the notable exception of three Goliathus species).

On AGBs and other exotic diplopoda: all of these require permits, even just to possess. It doesn't matter whether the specimens are wild caught or captive bred, or even if they were imported. They're all going to require a PPQ 526 and maybe even an importation permit. Some may even require containment facilities (fortunately Archispirostreptus gigas is among one of those that do not).

Finally: mantids. Believe it or not all exotic mantids are going to require a permit. Even just for possession. You read that right. Orchid mantids, Giant Asian, Giant African, Malaysian Dead Leaf, all technically require permits for possession. And not just permits, they also stipulate a containment facility. They are also pretty high up on APHIS's priority list, so confiscation is slightly more likely. However fortunately for those of us in the US, there are still quite a few wonderful, and good sized, native or naturalized species. My personal favorite are Carolina Blues (Stagmomantis carolina).

I'm sure a lot of you reading this feel like you just had your dreams crushed. But there's good news. Permits are actually pretty easy to get for most native beetles, exotic millipedes, and native\naturalized isopods. Happy to help anyone here if they would like to know more, or answer any questions.

 

[Entomomaniac]

Mantids seem really cool but my parents won’t let me feed Dubias, they’re ok with 1 roach, that’s it. No matter how much I tell them they won’t infest.... I heard mantids cant eat crickets, is that true?

Why won't your parents let you feed Dubias?

And yes, mantids can eat crickets.

 

[NecroticVenom]

Sorry I was hiking with my mum and my phone ran out of power. 40-0 really fast

They might let me get hissers after they read the thing about dubias but I’m not very sure. They just have the idea that all roaches are invincible, prolific, super insects that will kill us all.

A leech? Do you feed it your own blood? Or is there a way to feed it a raw piece of bloody meat or something?

 

[MrGhostMantis]

Why won't your parents let you feed Dubias?

And yes, mantids can eat crickets.

Crickets aren’t good for them they can carry parasites, bacteria, and if fed carrots, something in their immune system causes the mantis that ate the cricket that ate the carrot to melt from the inside out.

 

[Entomomaniac]

Crickets aren’t good for them they can carry parasites, bacteria, and if fed carrots, something in their immune system causes the mantis that ate the cricket that ate the carrot to melt from the inside out.

I didn't know that, but I didn't feed any crickets carrots and mainly use dubias.

 

[goliathusdavid]

Crickets aren’t good for them they can carry parasites, bacteria, and if fed carrots, something in their immune system causes the mantis that ate the cricket that ate the carrot to melt from the inside out.

I think it's highly dependent on what you're feeding your crickets and where you're sourcing them. I know many people who have had no problems at all (bacterial or parasitic) using crickets as feeders for mantids. But for someone just starting off, it may be better to begin with roaches and flies.

 

[NecroticVenom]

@goliathusdavid whhhaaaaattttt and why does my local pet store have mantids and other inverts

 

[Scorpiobsession]

A leech? Do you feed it your own blood? Or is there a way to feed it a raw piece of bloody meat or something?

I don't but you could and it's not harmful to you (unless it's wild caught and/or has previously fed on humans) or the leech. You can also drop a piece of raw (needs to be bloody) meat in the enclosure. You can also put a small animal in the enclosure (tadpole, small fish, etc.) and they'll drink the blood, then you can either take it out or if the enclosure's big enough leave it in there. They only need fed every two weeks at the most and they can be fed as little as every few months and they can go over a year without eating.

@goliathusdavid whhhaaaaattttt and why does my local pet store have mantids and other inverts

They likely (like many other places) don't follow or know the laws or they have permits but they just don't tell the buyer that you need them.