Goliatus Regius wanted

Goliathus said:
No, that's one of Goliathus goliatus's many forms.

Goliathus orientalis (the typical form) looks like this - 


Because the elytral markings can vary so much within each of the Goliathus species, sometimes the more reliable way to identify what species a specimen belongs to is to look for certain details of the pronotal markings.
 
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Oh, forgot all of the forms. 

 
Devastryk said:
I agree with most people here. However I wanted to add a couple cents to the conversation about legality vs how heavily regulated a certain group of insects are. This will differ state by state, but overall the biggest issue with exotic insects is the potential to become massive agricultural pests. Though exotic mantids and predatory insects are not very regulated because of the agricultural history of such insects like the Chinese mantids becoming naturalized with no apocalyptic consequences on agriculture or ecology. That is why you often see exotic hemipterans and mantids on ebay. People know that though they may technically be illegal, or at least obscure legalities, they are by in large ignored unless the person working with them also has heavily regulated species in which case it becomes a mark against them. In fact in the US there are many instances where people have called the USDA/APHIS about exotic mantids and hemipterans only to be given extremely vague answers as they themselves seem to be hesitant to give a clear answer.
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From what I've figured out in dealing with the USDA through my volunteering at a local museum/insectarium, a lot of inverts aren't really regulated once they're in the US. They don't bother mantis breeders that sell exotics openly on their own websites. If I tried to import mantises directly from Africa or Asia without a permit it would be a different story. They sort of get "grandfathered in" once there's a population of a species being bred in the US. 

 
pickle01 said:
From what I've figured out in dealing with the USDA through my volunteering at a local museum/insectarium, a lot of inverts aren't really regulated once they're in the US. They don't bother mantis breeders that sell exotics openly on their own websites. If I tried to import mantises directly from Africa or Asia without a permit it would be a different story. They sort of get "grandfathered in" once there's a population of a species being bred in the US. 
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I feel like part of that has to do with them already being introduced but on the other hand proving themselves to not be invaders with serious ecological and economic consequences. African land snails have been circulated and cost millions-perhaps billions in economic damage as they damage houses etc, and they are certainly quite regulated. Phasmids are often kept by private keepers and they are still regulated, and there is a reason people that have non-native phasmids are very secretive about it, while mantids are freely advertised by major retailers. So I do agree that species that are legalized tend to be species that have been imported before, but I also feel that this trend has more to do with both enough keepers pressuring for legislation and also the species themselves proving to be more or less harmless. Again, both phasmids and molluscs have been in the hobby for years and are definitely not openly discussed because they are heavily regulated. Moreover legislation on the state level also seems to be reactive as in the case of reticulated pythons and all the roach laws in Fl.

 
Ok, only 3 of the 5 Goliathus are currently legal in the U.S. : goliatus, regius and cacicus.

Goliathus orientalis and G.  albosignatus would still require permits!!

Steven Barney

 
I'm hoping that G. regius is more available here in the future (working on it) but the last adults I saw available for sale (overseas) cost over $1,000

 
Beetle-Experience said:
Ok, only 3 of the 5 Goliathus are currently legal in the U.S. : goliatus, regius and cacicus.

Goliathus orientalis and G.  albosignatus would still require permits!!

Steven Barney
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It seems that has changed. On August 13th, 2020, I received information from Dr. Wayne Wehling that the permit requirement has been removed for the entire genus. 

Quote:

“We [USDA] dropped the permit requirement for Goliathus in 2018.”

And a copy of a letter officially stating the regulatory requirements of Goliathus (no PPQ526 permit required): 

“We (USDA APHIS PPQ) have reevaluated your application to

move Beetles in the genus Goliathus from Africa to [redacted]. We have determined that species in this

genus of Scarab beetles are not known to be a plant

pests as the grubs (larvae) are predatory. As soil

predators APHIS is not going to require a permit for

import, however these beetle species remain regulated

under the Code of Federal Regulations 7 CFR 330. This

change from "No regulatory authority" to "No permit

required" does not affect you in any way other than

clarifying APHIS' regulatory authority.”

 
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