I've just completed a trade with Nikki Zajac (also known as @roach_1477 on IG) for a couple of neat Washington native inverts which I'm hoping I'll be able to culture successfully! 😁
This post, let's focus on the harvestmen, Sclerobunus nondimorphicus. These are in the same subfamily of harvestman (AKA "daddy long-legs") as the commonly kept Vonones spp., and so in theory should be relatively easy to set up. The only catch is that this is a genus that is generally mountainous and/or cave dwelling, and so they like quite cold temperatures. I probably will have to give them a diapause TBH, and keep them no warmer than 74F° during the Spring/Summer. This species is also TINY, same goes for all species in this genus, total legspan is a little bigger than a penny I'm pretty sure.
I've got my HOPEFULLY male and female pair set up in a small, minimally ventilated deli cup with an inch or so of what appears to be sphagnum peat and/or forest soil (which they were shipped with), with a chunk of rotten wood, some moss and some eggcrate pieces for hides. I'll be keeping them humid and cool, and will offer pre-killed inverts (maybe live Nocticola), dog food, artificial pollen and fruits for food.
Here are some pictures of the beauties:
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| Probable male, note the smaller abdomen and larger pedipalps. |
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| Probable female, hopefully gravid! |
Hopefully they'll do well for me! 😁 The suspect female looks quite plump and should be gravid, so I hope to find babies over the next few months or in the Spring!
Anyways, that gonna do it for this post, thanks for reading, hope you all enjoyed, stay safe, and I'll see everyone next time! 😉
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