Potato Bug Breeding

I recently acquired four jerusalem crickets from bugsincyberspace. Has anyone bred these or attempted to? If so, do you have a source of information i could view? I am not real sure how to sex them, but would definitely look into it. All replies much appreciated!

Josh

See post #8: http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?206622-Stenopelmatus-sp.-Jerusalem-cricket-sexing&

I think there is also a post somewhere here with photos of cerci for male and female.

Just to add my two cents, mating should not be too difficult (besides preventing cannibalism) but egg-laying will be. If you decide to try to breed them, I would use a large, dynamic setup with deep soil and different microclimates within that soil (e.g. drier on one side than another). You might want to contact Dr. David Weissman at gryllus1@juno.com, he's the expert on Stenopelmatidae and may have some tips on mating/breeding.

Shouldn't be any harder than breeding horses: Come on you old knothead! Get up there!

I found an article (will try to find it later, too tired, lol) that states stenopelmatids estivate throughout summer, and do not naturally feed during this time in the wild, yet remain active.. perhaps to prevent them from cannibalizing each other into extinction during this time, when several may share the same shelter.

The simple act of breeding is simple, males simply ascend from their burrows/shelters, and locate drumming females, then they do a strange hammering motion with their heads which lures a female out. The female immediately attempts to predate upon the male, who uses his hind legs to prevent the female from devouring him as they copulate. Then the male does not attempt to flee. for some reason the male allows her to eat him, and does not defend himself. Perhaps people fail because the female needs to eat him? Man these things just get weirder with increasing information of them.

So far, I have yet to get eggs from females, but I have had several definite copulations.. They immediately halt and separate when disturbed though.

Here's an interesting video of a psammophilous species that seems to be looking for wet patches of sand to burrow under, note how it doesnt burrow into the moist portions, but walks around testing it, then decides to burrow underneath the saturated portion of the sand.

[video=youtube;wI1Zh9iaWkE]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wI1Zh9iaWkE[/video]

BTW- if you've captured a Stenopelmatid outside of arizona, it aint S. fuscus

#2 and #3 seem to both be hybrids!









The last one shown here is native to scrub and chaparral habitat, the general area they were collected from abruptly switches from scrub to oak woodland

Sorry to bring up this old thread, but was anybody ever able to breed these?

I did get a female to oviposit, and one single nymph survived, but died after I left the container too dry X(

Being gravid is a death sentence for stenopelmatus, the digestive tract appears to atrophy, rendering them basically a big living ootheca


I would've had more eggs if she didnt get eggbound. One was sideways, blocking a mass of compressed ova

Aww, that sucks. What was the egg laying setup?