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Rearing of Megasoma punctulatus

35mm captive reared male.
Megasoma punctulatus is a very neat looking beetle with a split horn on the head and forward facing projections on the pronotum. This is a small Megasoma. go to Megasoma punctulatus hornsgo to Megasoma punctulatus mating Wild caught males range from 24-32mm although a record specimen was found at a whopping 42mm! For those who collect the Genus Megasoma it can be an incredible challenge getting even one of the U.S. Megasoma species to rear. M. punctulatus is the second rarest US species and is rarely caught in its range of Southern AZ. The rarest, Megasoma sleeperi, is from the Southern border of California and nowhere else. Megasoma vogti is from Southern Texas and Northern Mexico and is the most common of the U.S. species. Even M. vogti is very difficult to obtain.

Food:

Megasoma punctulatus adults eat sugary liquids like most Dynastids and the larvae thrive on compost, rotten wood, and dead leaves.
1st and 2nd instar larvae.

Life cycle:

Adults live two to four months. Mature beetles mate a few weeks after emergence. Females seldom produce more than 20 eggs. Wild-caught females seldom, if ever, lay more than 10 eggs possibly because they may have already deposited a number. Hatching takes 1 month, L1 to L2 takes 6-8 weeks, and L2-L3 takes 12-16 weeks. The complete life cycle takes one or two years, usually two.
 
 

Difficulties:

This species has almost no die-off at any stage if kept reasonably well. However, it is nearly impossible to acquire livestock.
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