Ralph Posted September 8, 2009 Share Posted September 8, 2009 I woke up to a strange little surprise this morning. My pre-subadult Tenodera female had just molted into a >3-inch adult! Mating her will be a challenge considering males are almost an inch longer than she is. What's really strange is that I had kept track of all her molts, having had her from a 3rd instar. She was fed at least once every two days, sometimes having several flies, katydids, or grasshoppers a day. If it's genetic, her mom was nearly 5 inches (recessive)! I'll post a pic sometime after her wings harden. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hibiscusmile Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 haha, they will still do it Ralph! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ralph Posted September 10, 2009 Author Share Posted September 10, 2009 The "dwarf" female is on the left, a normal one is on the right. One of the abnormal's brothers measures around 3.5 inches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allpet Roaches Posted September 12, 2009 Share Posted September 12, 2009 Wasn't the mother wild-caught? Captive conditions can seriously shrink them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ralph Posted September 14, 2009 Author Share Posted September 14, 2009 She was. My last subadult nymph molted out today, and was also smaller than normal (although a good deal bigger than this one!). Would raising them in larger terraria as opposed to smaller containers revert them to normal size? I'll have to try that with this set's nymphs. I still find it strange that she matured from pre-subadult. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allpet Roaches Posted September 14, 2009 Share Posted September 14, 2009 I'm not sure how much the issue is related to cage size versus food or possibly some other variable. I do know the shrinking can be especially noticeable in captive raised Tenodera. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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