Introduction and goals

Those who know me all surely know that I have a passion for insects. These little creatures have fascinated me since I was young. As a kid I was always busy catching bugs. My most vivid memories of it are when I caught big beetles such as Lucanus Cervus or a Europeon rhinoceros beetle (Oryctes Nasicornes) in France. Eversince, beetles have been my special interest within the insect world.

In summer 2015 some friends gave me my first terrarium with Pachnoda marginata imago's, some pupae and larvae. Sad enough I didn't provide them with sufficient soil, temperature and food, so they didn't thrive very well (although some of them lived for 8 months). Anyway, the gift gave me a real kickstart for my entomologic hobby. Later on I took care of them and provided them with everything they needed to lead a happy beetles life. Also, because there were only two survivors of Pachnoda marginata, I provided some friends for them. I bought 15 other Pachnoda's, This time I went for Pachnoda aemula from a Dutch breeder. For those who are not familiar with beetles, here's a photo of the species:

Pachnoda aemula

The Pachnoda aemula did very well. They ate tons of mushrooms, mated a lot and layed many many eggs. So it began! Soon the first eggs were hatching. It gives a strange feeling when your pets, for which you provide good care , get some 'kids'. It only made me want to breed more species. And that is EXACTLY what I did!

Now here I find myself, more than two years after I started this hobby. Finally feeling ready to write about the hobby. Doing this, I hope to accomplish two goals. Through the internet I learned a lot about beetle breeding. Documenting of the processes that lead to succes or failure is essential to make this hobby more easy for everyone. So the first goal will be to write and share how I breed my beetles. Fellow breeders can always contact me for advice (in both directions), questions etc. That's the main reason why the blog is written in English.

Secondly I would like friends and family to read this blog, so they can learn more about insects and this amazing hobby. Hopefully I can show many of you just why I think insects are so amazing. Thus the posts won't only be about breeding. I will try to provide everyone with some interesting facts about insects. As we like to call it in Belgium "wistjedatjes".

See you next post!