izzy_here

Maybe I'm paranoid, I keep thinking my female's wings don't look right...dunno why I think that. They don't seem shriveled, shrunken, or damaged in any way...do they? Also, I've seen what I took to be newly "born" nymphs recently...I'm still not sure they were actually lurida nymphs, as there is a thriving population of various microfauna in this vivarium. Is it possible to safely add more G. lurida stock to this viv?

Not sure I'd want them if they smell like poo

Ellipsidion humerale & Methana marginalis are absolutely stunning. The name Methana scares me though...exactly why was that name given? Conjures up visions of a truly horrible defensive smell..

I think more leaf cover would be of some benefit, it would provide even more surface area.

I bought these guys from zephyr what seems like ages ago, the colony continues to bloom...despite a few setbacks due to underfeeding/watering. Whenever I mist or feed I see lot's of babies, and at least 2-4 adult females...the males don't seem to last long, but theres always a new one maturing. I expect to see a new one mature very soon. 12" X 12" X 18" exoterra. Partial list of substrate, cocofiber, oak chips, leaves, bark, longfibered sphagnum moss, sand...oh, and there is a thriving population of springtails. I've not had one issue with mold, it always smells like fresh clean forest loam. The light was for the purpose of these photographs only! The only light they NORMALLY recieve, is ambient light from the window. I use 2 small heat pads for reptiles, one on the bottom, one on the back, one is 6 watts, the other is 7 watts. Much of the vivarium is enclosed with an insulating foam pad used for ductwork. This is attached with aluminum tape, because the adhesive on the foam doesn't stick very well longterm. Temps vary, but are always in an acceptable range, mid 70's-low 90's depending on room temp. The hillside/hive was built with a very chunky mixture, with lots of loft. This provides tons of habitat for all ages. It's virtually a honeycomb, full of tunnels and hidey-holes. These are the best pic's I could get of an actual lurida, she was the only one that didn't hide right away. Any thoughts? Am I doin it right?

I'd love to see 24 hours in the life of a wild Nivea colony, Gyna lurida would be interesting as well. I'd even settle for just a few moments of footage in an active time, as in the Domino vid I found. It's a shame...with all of the lovely new nature doc's/shows coming out these days, Planet Earth etc..you never see anything on roaches.

Domino Roaches in the wild.

I just purchased a diy flexwatt reptile heat pad on ebay, it was so cheap! Seriously worth your time to search flexwatt on ebay.

I couldn't get a good pic without disturbing them again...but atm there is a small cube of melon in the bug jar..there are so many springtails on it it looks like a gum drop

I thought it might be a nice setup for panchlora, they're said to sometimes inhabit low lying shrubbery etc. In many of the places they exist in the wild they are very likely seeking refuge in different types of spanish moss. I do have to watch it doesn't get too soggy, I've been known to drain it with airline tubing (with a plastic airstone on the end to prevent clogs) when it looks too soggy. Usually a good misting once or twice a week keeps the humidity where it should be. I also (quietly) remove the screen top and fan fresh air into the jar 2-3 times a day. I've been tossing around a few ideas for better ventilation...I may use a very small pc fan, this may be the easiest solution. The coffee cup in the pic is one of those ridiculously oversized ones that actually holds 2 regular cups. The viv next to it (housing my G. lurida and H. tenebricosa) is 12" X 12" X 18" the jar is 19" tall and approx 11" wide, it holds 3 imperial gallons, thats almost 3 & 3/4 US gallons. Substrate in both enclosures consist's of different layers/mixtures of (these are somewhat in order, mostly gravel in the bottom, mostly moss/leaves etc on top) heavy sand/light gravel, coco fiber, peat moss, crumbling pieces of oak, slightly less rotten oak, acorn shells, oak leaves crumbled and whole, long fibered sphagnum moss, all but the very bottom layer is quite fluffy & loose...there is also a rather large population of springtails & red/orange isopods. I've not seen one bit of mold in either enclosure pictured...despite the fact I place food directly on the substrate... All collected oak etc, was microwaved before use to kill any nasties. p.s. the light was only used for the purpose of photography, they normally only get indirect light from the window.

My giant Panclhora enclosure...I know, I know, it's just a jar...a 3.6 gallon jar! The plant hanging from the corkscrew willow branch is one of the three forms of spanish moss I keep...they do not eat it...yet: \

That is unfortunate about your portentosa, as for housing Panchlora and G. lurida together..I believe it will work, I only wished to have it verified by someone with more experience.

Beginning to feel as if this was a stupid question...

Hello shipi, I will be getting both soon. I plan to keep the giant Panchlora in their own enclosure at first, so they can build up their number's. I am very excited to be getting Gyna lurida "yellow", I can't wait! I see you have G. portentosa "black", very nice! Ed

Bump, anyone???