Diving beetle larva behavior

S

spencer

Egg
I'm new here, and I'm kind of inexperienced with beetle raising. I have recently captured the larva of a predaceous diving beetle, and am in the process of raising it. It is one of the larger species, probably in the family Dystictidae. I saw it crawling on the land in its cage, but it got back in the water when I opened the lid. Does this mean that it is looking for a spot to pupate, that it is unsatisfied with its habitat, or is this normal behaivior for a diving beetle larva?
 
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How long did you watch it moving about on land before you opened the cage? I would guess this is an important detail getting this question answered.

I'd love to see a photo of your set-up and the larva!

 
It was at night, so I didn't see it until I had opened the lid and turned on the light, which probably disturbed it. It moved around for about five seconds before getting back in the water. However, after the next day, I didn't see it. The water is quite clear, so I thoroughly checked for it but didn't see it at all. I think it probably pupated.

I can't figure out how to attach a picture, so I guess I'll try to describe it. The cage is a regular storage container you might use for clothes or canned food. There is about four inches of water on the bottom, and the land is about an inch to two inches above the water. There are some leaves and moss on the land, with lily stalks and water moss in the water. I bought a pump for circulation as well. There are some salamander naids and tiny fish I put in there for it to eat, but none are missing, dead, or damaged.

Thanks for responding!

 
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Well, let's hope it pupated
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I think I may have just fixed your attachment issue, so you might try again if you have a moment.

I look forward to seeing a photo of an adult beetle soon!

 
Try making the photo smaller. I think the limit is like 500 or 1000 KB (though it might say it is 2 MB).

If the function is open to you, you should be able to do the following:

1. Hit reply to this message.

2. A field should open below the typing window with buttons to its right that say "browse" and "upload". Can you see these?

 
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