Brad Ramsey
Retired Moderator
I spent a good part of the day yesterday cleaning Arthropod enclosures and decided this thread would be a good idea.
As much as we strive to be excellent keepers of our Chameleons, the proper keeping of their food is equally important and involves being good stewards of our surounding environments.
Having a collection of non-native/ exotic insects carries with it a huge responsibility, primarily in regard to security.
It occurred to me yesterday how easy it is to dispose of material that could cause a problem (particularly in a State where infestation or even survival is plausible...ie: Florida, Texas...)
I am in Colorado where it is highly unlikely that any of the insects I keep could survive very long in the wild, but I still implement extremely cautious practices in the keeping of these animals.
Primarily in regard to cleaning.
It is way to easy to throw out B. lateralis ootheca with substrate and frass for example. And particularly now, in the summer....if you don't think those are going to hatch ....you're crazy.
Nymphs of other roach species find it easy to hide between layers in the TP roll or in frass as well.
If you keep phasmids of any type, disposing of branches/ substrate carelessly could mean sending eggs or even adults out into the world.
Remember parthanogenetics is the rule rather than the exception with these, so most if not all eggs are viable and some species can lay thousands!
There are strict regulations about keeping many of these animals...permits and USDA inspections of your containment facilities are technically required.
Unless you're a zoo or University you have a snowballs chance of obtaining a permit....so if you are keeping any "illegal aliens" extreme care must be taken.
My personal recommendation is to utilize ziplock bags and the freezer.
Everything that comes out of every enclosure gets ziplocked, drowned and frozen (for at least a week) before going in the trash.
I'm interested to hear what others do in regard to this and just wanted to remind people of this possibly overlooked responsibilty.
-Brad
As much as we strive to be excellent keepers of our Chameleons, the proper keeping of their food is equally important and involves being good stewards of our surounding environments.
Having a collection of non-native/ exotic insects carries with it a huge responsibility, primarily in regard to security.
It occurred to me yesterday how easy it is to dispose of material that could cause a problem (particularly in a State where infestation or even survival is plausible...ie: Florida, Texas...)
I am in Colorado where it is highly unlikely that any of the insects I keep could survive very long in the wild, but I still implement extremely cautious practices in the keeping of these animals.
Primarily in regard to cleaning.
It is way to easy to throw out B. lateralis ootheca with substrate and frass for example. And particularly now, in the summer....if you don't think those are going to hatch ....you're crazy.
Nymphs of other roach species find it easy to hide between layers in the TP roll or in frass as well.
If you keep phasmids of any type, disposing of branches/ substrate carelessly could mean sending eggs or even adults out into the world.
Remember parthanogenetics is the rule rather than the exception with these, so most if not all eggs are viable and some species can lay thousands!
There are strict regulations about keeping many of these animals...permits and USDA inspections of your containment facilities are technically required.
Unless you're a zoo or University you have a snowballs chance of obtaining a permit....so if you are keeping any "illegal aliens" extreme care must be taken.
My personal recommendation is to utilize ziplock bags and the freezer.
Everything that comes out of every enclosure gets ziplocked, drowned and frozen (for at least a week) before going in the trash.
I'm interested to hear what others do in regard to this and just wanted to remind people of this possibly overlooked responsibilty.
-Brad
