Josh M.

You've never seen neonate chameleons grow rapidly until you feed them termites!

Hello, I have the opportunity to import several exotic isopods that aren't in the trade yet that I'm aware of.... I've searched, emailed numerous people and made a dozen plus calls and have yet to get a straight answer! The exporters just say it's fine on their end... Anyone know the laws and hopefully can provide a link with a concise answer? I'll attach a few pics and by no means are they the nicest of what I have available to me! There's two spiny species from Tanzania that put these two to shame! Many thanks for your time and info! -Josh

Thought some may find this interesting. Sorry if it's a repost!

Was trying to add text, he said the flash greatly washed out the colors.

BTW he got H. histrio and palliata from the same breeder in Malaysia....

Hey no worries! I now know better to post again when I'm so under the weather!

Yes, he has pics. I'm wiped out and about to crash. I was chatting with him earlier but he's not online now. I'll post them up tomorrow once he sends them. Again, sorry for the confusion! He's actually a very well respected reptile breeder.... They are indeed in the States. He says they were extremely small when he got them and seemed to take forever to have their first offspring. He thinks they should be giving birth fairly soon again though. Once they do, I can get mine. I told him about this thread but he didn't seem interested. I suspect since they were likely sent illegally....

Also, I'm well aware of where they originate from. They came from a breeder in Malaysia... The guy is trustworthy and has no reason to lie. I haven't sent him money, a trade or anything. He sent me some pics of his colony but I've misplaced them. I just asked him to resend them, I'll gladly post them up. I do apologize for the confusion. I was not feeling well and just wanted to let everyone know they are actually in the states which I assumed everyone would be stoked about!

No he's not a con artist... I just was thinking of another roach he and I were discussing. He got them as young nymphs from Malaysia, he had got another exotic as ooths. I just asked him about his magnifica and this is what he had to say: They are still alive. No new babies yet though. Hopefully they will start soon. Not sure though. They may even need a winter dormancy. All this speculation is hilarious! I can assure you he does have them but believe what you want.

There's some in the states... I know someone that currently has ooths from his and I'm first in line for nymphs. From what he's told me, they came from Malaysia as ooths. I'll send him this link to see if he will contribute.

Is anyone currently producing these fantastic isopods (zebras)? Please let me know if you are or know someone that is who would have some for sale or better yet, willing to do some trading. -Joshua

A little update, I'm now, finally, over run with nymphs! I added a lot more leaves to their enclosure which they started attaching their ooths too versus attaching them to the egg crates which they did in a weird way! They almost embedded them into the egg crates of which none of those hatched. I have some pics of how they did this which I'll upload this weekend as I've never seen another species do it in such a fashion... -Joshua

The parameters should be optimal, half their bin has heat tape keeping that end from high 80's to low/mid 90's with the other being low 80's. Their substrate is a mixture of coco choir, various hardwood leaves and just a little Aspen breeding. I mist it periodically, especially the hot side which I will also slowly saturate every month or so. I do very rarely let it dry out but even then, the very bottom is still a little damp... The cool side does stay fairly dry. I guess I'll just keep waiting but I'm starting to get a little worried as I have lost a few adults presumably to old age. My only other thought was to try a couple different bloodlines as I really do like them and I am not one to give up easily! Many thanks! -Joshua

Hello fellow insect enthusiasts! I received a starter colony of N. rhombifolia aka Harlequin roaches some time ago (8+ months) with the vast majority being adults. I started getting ooths immediately which they seem to prefer attaching to their egg crate furniture in quite a weird manner. Anyway, they appear viable but the oldest are going on at least 3 to 4 months now, if not older, with no signs of hatching. Recently, I've started using more and more hardwood leaves which they definitely seem to prefer attaching their ooths too. So about a month ago, I started trying to "incubate" the ooths under many different conditions but alas, nothing has of yet seemed to help speed along the process? I've tried a variety of temps and relative humidity parameters but again, nothing has made any difference it seems... From searching, I've read where everyone says theirs hatch quite quickly. I don't mind being patient and actually some of the slower hatching and maturing speciems are amongst my all time favorites! Such as the various Therea species.... I'm truly enamored with the harlequins though! They are quite a stunning roach and definitely lay a lot of ooths! So I would really like to figure this out.... Any tips, advice etc would be *deeply* appreciated! -Joshua Mease