Posts by Lewis Jansen

  • Wasp Queen

    Hello all,

    I have an art project in mind in The Netherlands, see the following pictures:

    This setup includes a wasp queen (Vespula vulgaris) that I caught on my window in the Netherlands in early April. I believe it is a wasp queen because it is quite large and was flying around during that time.

    My goal is to have the queen build a nest inside the large bottle so that I can have a glass bottle filled with a wasp nest as a final art product.

    I have placed the following items in the aquarium for the queen:

    • Various nesting materials such as reed, bark, wood, and rotten wood so she can choose what she wants.
    • Water
    • Honey

    I have not included any protein yet since there are no larvae to feed (?).

    The entire structure is in front of an East-facing window in my shed. I have tried adjusting the light by covering the bottle to make it a darker place for the queen to nest and covering the aquarium to make the bottle the only source of light for her to see.

    The temperature might not be optimal as the shed is only a few degrees warmer than outside.

    Currently, the setup is not working as the queen is not entering the bottle and doesn’t really seem to be interested in nesting. I have a few questions:

    • Is the bottle a suitable nesting place for the queen? I can imagine that air circulation is the bottle might be somewhat of a problem.
    • If not, how can I make it suitable?
    • What is the best food for the queen and colony in the future? Something not too difficult to gather.
    • What would be the best temperature and light conditions?

    Thanks for all the help!

    Kind regards and have a good weekend,

    Lewis

  • New regulation around sending letters with eggs

    Hello everybody,

    Usually, I'm sending eggs in eppendorf tubes, since they're practical, small and they don't weigh much. Then I attach this tube to a small piece of paper, put it in the letter and voila, thats it. So I'm always making sure Im sending a letter that weighs below 20 grams. This makes sure that I can use 1 international post stamp that is used for letters between 0-20 grams.

    Last week I heard from a buyer that he had to pay €3,60 for receiving a letter just like this. I asked around at the local post office and this is the case:

    Seemingly, since july last year, the regulation around sending a letter changed. When you send a normal letter, nothing changed and you can simply send a card like you always do. Though, when you send a letter with any kind of object in there, whatever it is, you will need to send it as a tracked 'letter package'. In this way, they can differentiate a letter from a letter package with an object in there. Even when the letter weighs below 20 grams, you still need to label it differently according to the new regulation. Instead of paying around €2,00 for an international stamp, you have to pay at least €4,15 from NL to NL and more from NL to abroad, up to €11,50 when sending it to the USA.

    I never knew this, and recently I sent many letters like this, most of them were received without any problem (as far as I know), just one wasn't received normally and I had to pay more for the added costs after receivement.

    My question is: who has more experience with this and are there easy tricks or tips to bypass this regulation and keep sending on eggs in the cheapest, though safest, way possible?

    Im happy with all the help!

    Kind regards and have a good evening,

    Lewis

  • Antheraea Yamamai??

    Hmmm so three different opinions :face_with_tongue:
    But i remember I've bought some eggs of antheraea frithi javanensis, and when I looked at some photo's of Antheraea Frithi Javanensis, im pretty sure now its a female of that specie!

    Thank you both :smiling_face:

    Lewis

  • Morpho Peleides L5 caterpillars

    Hello Michael,

    Thank you for your answer :smiling_face:

    Yes every phase is better than watching tv :face_with_tongue: I have seen photo's of the green transformation and I will know due to that when they are going to pupate. I know now I don't have to search for pupae everywhere in the greenhouse!
    I hope I can see the pupating!

    Best wishes,

    Lewis

  • Graellsia Isabellae

    Hello everybody,

    This morning, a male and a female of G. Isabellae hatched!! :smiling_face:
    My only question is, after how many days/maybe hours are those beautiful Saturniidae fertile? Is it just like with others that they are immediatly fertile after hatching?

    Best wishes,

    Lewis

  • Argemma Mittrei eggs

    Dear Julien,

    Thank you for your answer!
    Oke I will put them in my greenhouse on eucalyptus and see what they do. In my terrarium for hatching butterflies, the temperature is always between 23-30 degrees, so that's not a problem :smiling_face:

    Thank you!

    regards,
    Lewis Jansen

  • Argemma Mittrei eggs

    Hello everybody!

    I have a few questions about breeding!
    In a short time, I will be able to get eggs of A. Mittrei, but here in Holland, the temperatures are now between 10-25 degrees and some people do breed them outside.
    For me, this is a little bit tricky and my question is; can you also breed them with the more tropical conditions and which conditions do the eggs/caterpillars/cocoons and butterflies need?

    Please inform me with all your help!

    Best wishes,
    Lewis Jansen