My insect collection

My insect collection

Postby mrtsnakes » Sat Feb 04, 2012 3:37 pm

Hello guys and girls…..

My passion always used to be reptiles, and to some degree it always will be, but my newest and most interesting hobby that I have started 5 years ago was to start keeping insects.

I started with a few mantis and stick insects, wow did I struggle to keep them alive……but as with most things you learn from trial and error, and I seem to have mastered the hobby of keeping insects…..

Below is just a few photos of some of the many insects I keep!!

DO BE WARNED…….ONCE THE HOBBY BITES, IT TAKES OVER YOUR LIFE!!!............. ITS LIKE A DRUG AND I LOOOOVE IT……!

One of my Female Deroplatys dessicata- photo by John Baldwin
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Sibylla pretiosa
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Tarachodes sp
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L1 nymph of Orchid mantis
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Popa sp
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Harpagomantis tricolor
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Eurycanth calcarata
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Phyllium giganteum
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Phyllium sp-Philippines
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Hope you enjoyed some of my photos of the insects i have in my collection!
keep an eye out as i will be posting some more pics when i get a chance!! :smt006
Brave ppl die young!
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Re: My insect collection

Postby shadowfoot » Sat Feb 04, 2012 4:05 pm

Nice mantid collection, more of a scorpion guy myself.
I heard that keeping stick insects alive is a nightmare.
Shining brightly, even for a split
second, is better than living a
dull-grey life for eternity - Jing (King Of Bandits)
A life without gambling is like
sushi without wasabi - Gintoki (Gintama)
I have no fear of losing my life - if I have to save a koala or a crocodile or a kangaroo or a snake, mate, I will save it - Steve Irwin
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Re: My insect collection

Postby Mr Venom » Sat Feb 04, 2012 4:16 pm

Wow great collection, I especially like the Phyllium giganteum photo.

Thanks for sharing!
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Re: My insect collection

Postby it_bit_me » Sat Feb 04, 2012 4:28 pm

Nah it aint that hard , it's just some species that specialize on certain diets. Some species have eggs that take a year to hatch.

Have you any idea what our local giant stick insects eat MrT ? I asked you a few months ago but you ignored me so far.
If I'm gonna be an old, lonely man, I'm gonna need a thing, you know, a hook, like that guy on the subway who eats his own face. So I figure I'll be Crazy Man with a Snake, y'know. Crazy Snake Man. And I'll get more snakes, call them my babies, kids won't walk past my place, they will run. "Run away from Crazy Snake Man, " they'll shout!”
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Re: My insect collection

Postby mrtsnakes » Sat Feb 04, 2012 8:12 pm

Thanks guys :D

It_bit_me, sorry for not getting back to you, my Palophus reyi that i have at the moment are feeding on Acacia caffra and Acacia tortilis but im sure they will eat any acacia species!

any way a few more photos for you..... :-)

White spotted assassin bugs
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Question mark cockroach
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Not sure on the name of this guy
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Pachnoda sp.
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Amazula suavis
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more to come..... ;)

-Pics Fixed-

-You must copy the URL of the full pictures, not just the thumbnail- Wes
Brave ppl die young!
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Re: My insect collection

Postby it_bit_me » Sat Feb 04, 2012 8:44 pm

Thanks MrT ,I got depressed having them but never seeing them eat...
I'll add some picks of my collection if you don't mind. :smt004
If I'm gonna be an old, lonely man, I'm gonna need a thing, you know, a hook, like that guy on the subway who eats his own face. So I figure I'll be Crazy Man with a Snake, y'know. Crazy Snake Man. And I'll get more snakes, call them my babies, kids won't walk past my place, they will run. "Run away from Crazy Snake Man, " they'll shout!”
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Re: My insect collection

Postby mrtsnakes » Sat Feb 04, 2012 8:54 pm

Go ahead....I don't mind!
Brave ppl die young!
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Re: My insect collection

Postby it_bit_me » Sat Feb 04, 2012 10:14 pm

This is all I got . :-D :-D The Empusa has made herself hardegat and only eats flies at the moment. They are my favorite but I have never been able to have an female and male at the same time.
Empusa guttula
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Nymph
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I had a little success with Popa. :)
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If I'm gonna be an old, lonely man, I'm gonna need a thing, you know, a hook, like that guy on the subway who eats his own face. So I figure I'll be Crazy Man with a Snake, y'know. Crazy Snake Man. And I'll get more snakes, call them my babies, kids won't walk past my place, they will run. "Run away from Crazy Snake Man, " they'll shout!”
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Re: My insect collection

Postby shadowfoot » Sat Feb 04, 2012 10:26 pm

Aah, they hatched, congrats Uwe!
Shining brightly, even for a split
second, is better than living a
dull-grey life for eternity - Jing (King Of Bandits)
A life without gambling is like
sushi without wasabi - Gintoki (Gintama)
I have no fear of losing my life - if I have to save a koala or a crocodile or a kangaroo or a snake, mate, I will save it - Steve Irwin
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Re: My insect collection

Postby Westley Price » Sun Feb 05, 2012 9:18 am

I'm not really into inverts, but it's nice to see something out of the ordinary.

Thank you for sharing!

We need someone like you who seems to know quite a bit about inverts to help out in the inverts section.

There are not too many guys who are willing or able to give advice and our mod isn't online too often.
"I am dying by inches from not having anybody to talk to about insects." - Charles Darwin
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Re: My insect collection

Postby Karin » Mon Feb 06, 2012 7:24 am

Some of these bugs are fantastic. I really like the Phyllium giganteum and the 2nd pic of the Female Deroplatys dessicata is to gorgeous!

The Eurycanth calcarata are to weird, have never seen these before, but they look stunning.
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Re: My insect collection

Postby snake kid » Mon Feb 06, 2012 9:32 pm

I to have a few insects, they are awsome and I love my mantises, I like all carnivores as I love to see them hunt and it is also easy to find food for them. Do you breed any of your species mrtsnakes?
3.1. BCI
1.0. Burmese python
1.0. Taiwanese ratsnake
2.0. Cornsnake 1 normal 1 Butter
1.2. Brown house snake
1.1. Olive house snake
1.0. Mole snake
1.1. Rhombic egg eater
1.0. Coral snake
1.1. Red lipped herald
0.1. Cape cobra
1.1. Night adder
1.1. Puff adder
1.0. boomslang
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Re: My insect collection

Postby Joh » Fri Feb 24, 2012 8:33 pm

Hi There,

I just wanted to tell you that I think your unidentified beetle is a Ground Beetle, Family Carabidae.

Sincerely,
Joh
The one aspect that people try to remove from naturalism, and that is to me the most important, is prayer. Without Prayer I would not have managed to do half the things that I have done successfully.

A small colony of Oxyhaloa dubia, two Tivia sp., an unidentified species of Cockroach, 8 tadpoles, 3 dogs, 4 cats, a budgie, and some other random animals.
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Re: My insect collection

Postby mrtsnakes » Sat Feb 25, 2012 9:29 pm

Joh wrote:Hi There,

I just wanted to tell you that I think your unidentified beetle is a Ground Beetle, Family Carabidae.

Sincerely,
Joh


Thank you Joh :D
Brave ppl die young!
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Re: My insect collection

Postby mrtsnakes » Sun Feb 26, 2012 6:11 pm

hey guys...

Just to let you all know that i do have a stand at thr JHB Exotic Reptile & Pet Expo in Johannesburg on the 24th/25th of march,where i will be displaying a couple of my insects, there will also be some live stick insects and leaf insects plus a few eggs for sale!

looking forward to seeing you all there! :D
Brave ppl die young!
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