Where to get dynastes tityus (or granti) for the holiday season?

[coughings]

Hi,
My daughter has shown an interest in beetles for a little while now, and we decided we could make room for a “family pet”
Is d. tityus or d. granti available this time of year? Or should I wait until later.

thank you

 

[DARAPTOR]

I'm not sure if your area but you could get a lucanidae or a stag beetle. You could fed it leaves or pieces is fruit they make great pets and the pincers do not hurt and they are not poisonous

 

[chanda]

Dynastes tityus and Dynastes grantii have fairly short adult lives - usually only a few months during the summer - though they do spend two to three years as larvae. This time of year, you are unlikely to find adults - and the larvae spend all their time underground, feeding on decaying wood, which will make them a rather disappointing pet for a child. If they are dug up frequently so the child can see them, it will be stressful for them and may kill them.

If your child is set on a pet beetle, something like a death feigning beetle or darkling beetle will be far more active and have a much longer adult life.

There are also plenty of other invertebrates that make good pets, including hissing cockroaches, millipedes, mantises, centipedes, whip spiders, vinegaroons, scorpions, or tarantulas. (Of course most of these - particularly the venomous ones - are "look but don't touch" pets, like fish.)

 

[mantisfan101]

I think @Elytra and Antenna has some adult breeding pairs, although they are not cheap. Also D. Tityus have really sharp claws and hold on pretty tightly.

 

[Ratmosphere]

Yea but I would not recommend letting your kids hold them if you get adults. They hold on pretty strongly and could tear the skin off with their claws. Depending on what substrate they're housed in, they can carry microbes on their claws and small cuts in the skin can cause infections.

If you raise larvae of either species, Dynastes grantii takes way longer to pupate. Dynastes tityus is the way to go larvae wise. The larvae are relatively cheap while adults are expensive and don't live long. Unless you are breeding the pair for eggs or plan to pin the beetles when they die, there really is no point to having adults! This is just my opinion.

I think you should get larvae, raise it to a pupa, and watch it emerge as an adult. I feel like this would be fun for your family. Substrate should be obtained beforehand. Bugsincyberspace sells some or you can make your own with my tutorial below.

Pretty sure @NathanJBoob has larvae for sale!

Join www.beetleforum.net as well, they have a classifieds section where you can find what you're looking for.

 

[mantisfan101]

Agreed, and I’d like to stress again that D. Tityus are not good for handling, especially for younger kids. I held mine a couple days ago and its claws left a bunch of red marks on me and they got slightly infected. If you still want a beetle, you could go for other beetles like Cotinis nitida, the harlequin flower beetle, the hermit beetle, or darkling beetles. I highly recommend the last group as they live for a long time(much longer than most or all rhino beetles), do not have sharp claws, don’t mind handling at all, and are much easier to care for than D. Tityus.

 

[Arthroverts]

I agree with all of the above, although Cotinis have irrepressible flight urges and will relentlessly bash themselves against the enclosure as they try to fly. Gymnetis sp. (Flower Beetles) are much better choices pet wise in my opinion.
@coniontises.

Thanks,

Arthroverts