found them under slightly rotting logs and they are HUGE!
Stag Beetle Larvae?
- Thread starter DeadInTheBasement
- Start date
awesome!
i am kind of confused what kind of substrate to use for them and i cant find any care sheets online for them
and i know people offer dogfood and fruit to dynastes larvae to eat do stags also benefit from this?
i am kind of confused what kind of substrate to use for them and i cant find any care sheets online for them
and i know people offer dogfood and fruit to dynastes larvae to eat do stags also benefit from this?
Lucanus
Lucanus
I think you should use the same wood that you collected larvae from.
I tried the dog food but it did not work. I ended up with a large amount of mites.
can they be housed together or should i keep them seperated?
If you want them to be big adults, separate them and feed them lots of rotting hardwood.
how much space does each one need?.... 16 ounce container work?
ok i have them all seperated and in a substrate of 50% rotting wood and 50% leaf litter
i was unable to get back the logs i found them at but i am hoping this substrate will work well since none of them were found inside a log but under the logs in the soil
is there any way to determine what kind of stags they are? some of them were found miles apart
i was unable to get back the logs i found them at but i am hoping this substrate will work well since none of them were found inside a log but under the logs in the soil
is there any way to determine what kind of stags they are? some of them were found miles apart
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Beetle-Experience
Eudicella
DeadInTheBasement,
Larvae of the four US Lucanus species look exactly alike. We would either have to:
a. Guess the species by the area of the US you live in
b. Wait until they pupate
Overall, not knowing where you are from I would say (from most to least probable):
L. capreolus
L. elaphus
L. placidus
L. mazama
I have found L. elaphus grubs directly under a rotten pine tree before.
Steven
Larvae of the four US Lucanus species look exactly alike. We would either have to:
a. Guess the species by the area of the US you live in
b. Wait until they pupate
Overall, not knowing where you are from I would say (from most to least probable):
L. capreolus
L. elaphus
L. placidus
L. mazama
I have found L. elaphus grubs directly under a rotten pine tree before.
Steven
Beetle-Experience
Eudicella
...also, I would suggest the dry dog food. Only put one piece in at a time, and remove any leftovers before adding a fresh one.
For some reason people will mix several pieces in with the substrate which only leads to disastrously mite-y consequences.
For some reason people will mix several pieces in with the substrate which only leads to disastrously mite-y consequences.
cre0broter
Pupa
how'd you find em? I've been looking for L.capreolus larvae for a long time!!! also, why do people have to separate the larvae after finding them?
Beetle-Experience
Eudicella
Actually, just rolling over rotten logs in an area of north Louisiana where they had been found before. I also found one adult male with a blacklight that same night.
Sometimes Stag larvae will attack each other. I have seen one L.c. hatchling kill another hatchling before.
Sometimes Stag larvae will attack each other. I have seen one L.c. hatchling kill another hatchling before.
Beetle-Experience
Eudicella
The only grubs I rear together are Cetonids (flower beetles).
seems these three range here in Tennessee
L. capreolus
L. elaphus
L. placidus
i am hoping for lucanus elaphus but i am thrilled with any of the three
i found them directly under HUGE logs(2-3ft thick) and the logs were not very decayed i am guessing they had only been fallen down 2-3 years very deep in the forest
they were all in 4 different locations miles apart all in the same situation
now that i think about it i probably should have separated the larvae when i found them to keep track of which were found together lol
Cre0broter: i know some species of beetle larvae will devour each other given the chance so they are kept separated and peter says being separated will make them grow larger!
good luck finding larvae i have been looking for these for 3 years but i guess its easy once you find a good location
L. capreolus
L. elaphus
L. placidus
i am hoping for lucanus elaphus but i am thrilled with any of the three
i found them directly under HUGE logs(2-3ft thick) and the logs were not very decayed i am guessing they had only been fallen down 2-3 years very deep in the forest
they were all in 4 different locations miles apart all in the same situation
now that i think about it i probably should have separated the larvae when i found them to keep track of which were found together lol
Cre0broter: i know some species of beetle larvae will devour each other given the chance so they are kept separated and peter says being separated will make them grow larger!
Beetle-Experience
Eudicella
Awesome. I think L.e. are a lot more common for you up there than down here in Louisiana - so you may have hit the jack pot. Keep us posted when they pupate. Whatever species it is, when you have a male that pupates you will be able to tell what they are right away.
Use only rotten wood, they are mostly grown so you might not lose most of them, but you're taking a big risk of losing them all.
No, the sutures on the face are very different. Also the head coloration is different but that's not definitive.