Coelocnemis sp?

[Hisserdude]

I caught quite a few of these, most of them males. I am going to try to breed them with a substrate of coco fiber, with a little rotten wood chunks mixed in. Has anybody bred these, and if so, do you have any tips?

 

[Hisserdude]

Just thought I should tell you what's going on with these. Still no larva, but the males are constantly mating with the females, I think I am going to move them to a bigger cage, with lots of hides, in case the males are stopping the females from laying eggs by always being on them. Or I might move the females to their own cage, seeing as the males outnumber the females 10 to 3. These guys do not care much for dog food, they prefer fruits and veggies. I am going to try and feed them some oats.

 

[Hisserdude]

I have moved them to a bigger cage, no larva yet. They do like dog food, but it has to be moist. They still like carrots better though. Here are some pics!

Adult male.

Male on right, female on left.

Male on right, female on left.

The enclosure.

Fingers crossed for some larva!!!

 

[AlexW]

Have you tried adding rotted leaves? I heard those are a good egglaying stimulus.

 

[Hisserdude]

I did, it did not make a difference. I also added Eleodes frass, two yellow mealworms, and some rotten wood.

 

[Bill Myers]

Have you tried sand?

 

[Hisserdude]

I do not think they would lay eggs in sand, they came from a forest. I found them under leaf litter and bark. Desert darklings might lay eggs in sand, but these are more of a forest species.

 

[Bill Myers]

I do not think they would lay eggs in sand, they came from a forest. I found them under leaf litter and bark. Desert darklings might lay eggs in sand, but these are more of a forest species.

I'm just trying to think outside the box. LOL. Were there any pine trees in the immediate vicinity?

 

[Hisserdude]

Thinking outside the box is good! Yes there were pine trees nearby, I found some of them under pine bark on the ground.

 

[Bill Myers]

Thinking outside the box is good! Yes there were pine trees nearby, I found some of them under pine bark on the ground.

Hmmm... Maybe try some rotted pine.

 

[Hisserdude]

I could not find any rotten pine logs, the only rotten logs I could find were cottonwood.

 

[Bill Myers]

Maybe lay down some pine bark in their container?

 

[Peter Clausen]

I would mix some compost soil into the sand and coconut fiber as a next step.

 

[Lucanus]

Try eco earth or saw dust of oak trees. I've had success with getting eggs from CA Coelocnemis sp. by using these.

 

[Hisserdude]

They are in eco earth/coconut fiber right now, mixed in with some rotten cottonwood. Where can you get compost soil?

 

[Bill Myers]

The garden section at the hardware store (Lowes) is my usual stop. Get the composted cow manure.

 

[Hisserdude]

Ok, thanks!

 

[Ratmosphere]

Those beetles are super.

 

[Hisserdude]

Thanks!