Starting Out

Hello. I am someone who is just getting into centipedes, and I would much appreciate advise for starting out. I have read many other threads, and am aware that there is not such thing as a beginner centipede. I simply have a few questions. I am very young, and do not have a lot of money. I don't think I will be buying any types of exotic centipedes soon. I am thinking of starting out with just some common house/garden centipedes. Here is where the questions begin. Would it be alright for me to simply catch any old centipede out there, or should I go and purchase one from the store? Where should I get food for a centipede? Can centipedes is the same kind of meat that human's eat? Can I simply gather flies and crickets from the outdoors, or would it be better to purchase the food from a pet store? What would you say the monthly expenses would be for keeping a small centipede? (Do not include the cost of the centipede or the centipede's home.)

Hi Drake,

Always good to hear from a fellow Chicagoan... Which part are you from? I'm out in the Naperville/Downers Grove area... anyway...

I think your decision to start with "natives" is a smart one, especially given your "young" age... Stone Centipedes (Lithobius forficatus) and House Centipedes (Scutigera coleoptera) are abundant around here... if your house has a basement that gets a little damp, start looking there for the House pedes... Both species can be found by simply visiting a park or forest preserve and turning over rocks, logs, and leaf litter. Be VERY careful that you check out where you're putting your hands before just turning over logs... yellow jackets love making homes out of rotting logs...

http://www.arachnopets.com/centipedes/cgallery/lforficatus01.htm - here is a pic courtesy Arachnopets that shows the native Lithobius forficatus.... you will for sure find a few of these bad boys around if you look hard enough.

Anyway, for either pede, care is pretty straightforward... if you keep a house centipede, you basically will have to try to kill it, because they are the hardiest creatures I've EVER seen... just throw some dirt in a cup with a locking lid and drop in a few pinhead crickets, and watch the show... they are AWESOME predators. If you find a Stone centipede, you need to be a little more attentive. They require a bit more humidity... not wet or anything, just a damp area on their substrate will be fine. Also, they love to burrow if you don't give them a hide, so if you ever want to see them, put a piece of forest moss or a little piece of bark or something down, so they will hide instead of burrow. I feed mine pinheads as well. they will *usually* eat out in the open, but sometimes they are pretty reclusive...

Let me know if I'm close enough to ever be of any help... good luck, and you've come to the right place...

your older than i am...just make the jump into big pedes...
i just turned 15 and i dont even have a job yet and i have some pedes coming in soon.

I live over around the Berwyn/Cicero area. Thank you very much for the information. It will no doubt be useful in my future centipede encounters. I've always liked centipedes, although I admit that they are a little creepy. (So many legs!) I'll have to get to work on a habitat first.

Additionally, do they eat anything other than crickets? The local ones, I mean. Is there any type of 'human food' that would be okay for them, or are crickets the only ones available? How about ants? Would they eat ants?