A hitchhiker from a recent Wild Brazil/Peru Import

[saor alba]

Well guys heres one for yous to try find out what this is.
I got a import of wild L-Numbers and small fish this week for my own pleasure,and there was a
passenger along with them ,and its def a predator.(Totally not fishy type)

Its like a dragon fly larve but body similiar to a cockroach but with hairy filament on both sides and 2 spikey bits at the arse end, eyes like a preying mantis and can run like F...k trust me its about 1 1/2 long,and also stalks fish as i witnessed in the tank ie thats the reason i spotted it fish kept staying away from certain areas of the tank at the times i was watching them.

I,ll put the pictures of this creature on for you to look at and see what your opinions are (And its still alive in a container within the same tank ) not killed it as yet as im nosey to see what it is first and what it will grow /hatch into.
So lets here your ideas on this wee beastie.

[Marc van Arc]

You could google for/on Belostoma(-tidae), but I'm absolutely no expert.

[saor alba]

Cracking first guess Marc thats the spirit .
But going by the picture of the bug thing youve said it hasnt big eyes and it looks slightly different smooth and not hairy either.

But hey im no expert either and having a bash at guessing what it is, its a good place to start from i say it may be along the same family who knows ,but its def a predator bug you shouldve see this thing when it was in the tank free, it would slowly creep/stalk towards a fish then run like the clappers towards it ,so its a hungry bugger for protein id say.

[jp11biod]

Definitely a dragon fly larvae. I have been collecting them for weeks to help a friend out with macroinvertebrates surveys on a few local lakes

they will eat small fish

JS

[jp11biod]

and some species stay as larvae for a number of years-- that may not be the case for South American species, they are all different

[Acid John]

You are looking for something like a Sympetrum larvae.

[Gordon C. Snelling]

Absolutely a dragon fly larvae, would be interesting to rear out and see the adult.

[saor alba]

Cheers Lads so it is a Dragonfly larvae after all and a possiblity of a few year to hatch out mmmm longer than i thought i,ll try keep it for a few more months maybe high temp and plenty oxy and see what happens maybe hatch quicker that way.
Now food wise... i suppose putting a few endlers in its tank for it to stalk/catch that should be enough for it ????Reckon

[jp11biod]

any live food of the proper size will make him happy

JS

[Bas Pels]

I think these larvae need lots of food

Assume the dragonfly will at least be as big as the ones we are familiar with, and than it will have to grow to at least 5 cm / 2 inches before it molds into an adult

Personally I would not even try

[dw1305]

Hi all,

You are looking for something like a Sympetrum larvae

It is a Dragon-fly nymph that naturally lives in the leaf litter on the substrate. I'm not sure what you get in S. America, but as "Acidjohn" says in Europe Libellula and Sympetrum nymphs look like this.

This is the Broad-bodied Chaser (L. depressa).


cheers Darrel

[Mike_Noren]

They are not difficult to maintain in captivity, will eat pretty much any live food (earthworms, bloodworms, small crustaceans, and, yes, small fish), but may take up to a couple of years before it metamorphoses into an adult dragonfly.

[grokefish]

But how cool would it be if it morphed into a monster with a 12" wingspan!