A week later I found a female and male together on the stairwell of my apartment. Im so glad it helped! If thats the case, how do you pick up a kuwagata? Also, the article said ticks? The adult beetle will remain dormant in the pupation chamber for another 4 weeks before coming out from the pupation chamber. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Tree barks should also be removed so that the beetles can easily chew through the wood for oviposition. Simply keep the grub in flake soil or kinshi. Refresh your food regularly, around every other day. Yum! Don't place them in direct sunlight. recipes It can tolerate temperatures as high as 86 F (30 C) and as low as 50 F (10 C). However, you canhelp prevent sicknessby eliminating or at least reducing the beetles natural enemies, dani (mites/ticks) and nematodes. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); animal cafes A commercial product that is accepted very well is beetle jelly. Manage Settings Mushi Kichi The female will lay around 50 small eggs at the bottom of the substrates. At the minimum besides a substrate, you should provide a hide for your beetle(s). Hercules beetles are prevalent in Central and South America in the tropical rain forests in the mountains and lowlands and on Caribbean islands such as Trinidad and Tobago. Kinshi should be changed once 70% of it turns brown. Stag beetles vary in size. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. They have a relatively short life cycle and adults are very difficult to find. Dont place the enclosure in direct sunlight, because this will heat up the enclosure to temperatures that are deadly for your beetles. Unfortunately, beetles are very susceptible to drying out, so this spray helps keep their bedding moist. As for a couple it is better to go larger. If possible, bake your substrate to kill any pathogen before using it. Feed the giant stag beetle with cut fruits such as a slice of banana, orange, apples, or pineapple a quarter of their body size. Homemade Beetle Jelly: An Easy How-To Recipe. Never forcefully pull the beetles from a surface they grasp because that may break their legs. Beetles are insects with an essential role in nature and can be an interesting pet under the right conditions. In addition, keeping leaves in the case helps keep the soil moist. I started to develop interest in arthropods since 2007, and have been keeping them for a few years. Thank you! Keep the flake soil moist but not wet. Stag beetles easily become dehydrated. Due to budget concern, I use Kinshi only for male beetles after the second molt. Major male beetles have 2 prominent mandibles, while the minor male beetles have way shorter mandibles. When it is time to pupate, the grub will move to the bottom of the container to build a pupation chamber, within which it pupates. Females have much smaller mandibles. To make sure that the jelly doesnt make the bedding dirty, you can place it in a food plate. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[250,250],'xtraordinarypets_com-large-mobile-banner-1','ezslot_11',176,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-xtraordinarypets_com-large-mobile-banner-1-0'); The mother should be removed from the nursery chamber one month after she was placed into the chamber. As long as you keep the bug case clean and keep humidity down, though, then they wont get out of control. Continue with Recommended Cookies, A blog on extraordinary, non-conventional pets. This site is owned and operated by Haomaru. They prefer20 to 25 degrees Celsius(68 degrees to 77 degrees Fahrenheit). tea Male has a larger head capsule than a female grub. Stag beetles are sensitive to extreme temperature. The stag beetle is our largest land beetle and the males have characteristic 'antlers'- but don't worry, they are harmless. These amazing creatures used to be a common sight, especially in the south of the UK, but sadly they are declining. Due to the small size of the eggs, I would advise you to leave them in the nursery container and let them hatch. Description. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". These jaws can sometimes be as big as the beetle's body (as in the case of giant stag beetles ). To sex the grubs, look at the dorsal part of their abdomen. The branches give the beetles places to hide. Make sure the housing is covered and ventilated. Males use their mandibles to fight with other males and try to knock them off branches to eliminate the competition for breeding. You can let your beetles mate after they have exited the dormant period. Place the housing in the dark. beer The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". If you are reading this, you are probably considering keeping it as a pet. Czesznak Zsolt/Shutterstock.com. How to Take Care of Rhinoceros Beetles (Kabutomushi), How to Take Care of Dragonfly Nymphs (Yago), How to Take Care of Japanese Freshwater Crabs (Sawagani), How to Take Care of Your Stag Beetle (Kuwagatamushi). Unfortunately, when stag beetles get sick, there isnt much humans can do to help them. It takes 6-12 months for the grubs to turn into adults. Apparently it has to do with egg-laying differences in Kabutomushi and Kuwagatamushi. The dimension of your housing for a beetle should be at least 3 times the length of your beetle in length, 2 times in width and 2 times in height. Do not disturb the grubs once it starts building the pupation chamber. Now, at many shops or online beetle jelly is regularly available, but if you have difficulties getting it or want to make it yourself Ive written a complete guide on how to make beetle jelly yourself. Some Japanese sites even say that you can use normal mite-repellent methods to keep a kabutomushi dani-free. You can let the beetles mate 1 month after they start feeding. You wont want to buy a 8 months old adult beetle. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. It is more fun and satisfying to get some grubs and grow them into adults. Always grab their thorax instead of their legs because their legs are very fragile. Mites certain mites in the soil can feed on the eggs while some parasitize the grubs. Thank you. The smeared feces release bacteria, which help the grubs to digest some substrates before the grubs feed on them. These little stag beetles are the perfect little Bugga Buddies! They fight each other using their pincers for the right to mate. If you enjoy this website, found some benefit in reading the articles and would like to send a donation, it is really appreciated. You may want to buy the grubs as they are way cheaper than an adult beetle. Im interested in attempting to maintain a couple of kuwagatas and try to get them to lay eggs, that way I can continuously breed them and keep them going. The grub will feed its way to the first molt in about 30 days, and the second molt in another 6-8 weeks. illustrated by Des Helmore This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. According to several beetle care websites, the answer is no, you do not have to change the dirt. Stop changing substrate once the grub builds a pupation chamber. http://jeb.biologists.org/content/14/3/364, http://insects.about.com/od/insects101/f/Do-Insects-Feel-Pain.htm, http://www.cell.com/trends/immunology/abstract/S1471-4906(04)00091-2, this unofficial explanation on the Japanese Yahoo Answers site. timeout Place the fruit onto a sauce plate so that you can clean it easily. While the adult beetles are protected with a thick layer of armor, you want to be gentle when handling them. Glad someone posted about their care Didnt know they had such long lifespans. Go to a wooded area far from urban light pollution.