Meet the Animals:Darkling Beetles!!

These carefree giant beetles are very interesting critters! They live in the custom-made tortoise table along with our three Russian tortoises, Eon, Era, and Ages. These curious little bugs are important benefactors to the tortoises they live alongside, eating all of the tortoise's left overs and poop. We have several of the darkling beetles living in the tortoise table and they are very interesting to watch as they interact with our tortoises. They grow up to two inches long, making them the biggest native insects in Colorado! They do not bite, but have a very foul smelling spray which has earned them the slang name of 'stinkbug'. One time, I (Sebastian) picked one up and it sprayed me all across my hand! It took days for that smelly stain to come off! Though they don't really have a personality like the tortoises or many of our other animals, they are still very good pets, being extremely easy to care for and very fun to watch. We actually caught ours here in Colorado, and though they don't live very long, they reproduce so fast we never need to catch any more! Overall, they are very cool pets that you can actually buy at the petstore; their larva are called superworms, and they are sold as reptile food. If they are left in their container in a warm spot, they will turn into beetles after a month or so. We have done this before and, with any luck, the superworms turn into curious, fun-to-watch darkling beetles!

Meet the Animals: Russian Tortoises!!

Tortoises are such sweet, adorable animals! :) We have 3 Russian tortoises who live in a large, custom tortoise table in my daughter's room. They share their habitat with some neat beetles who love to eat grasses and dandelions almost as much as the tortoises do!

This beautiful girl is Era. She is our newest Russian tortoise. We provided a new home for her when her previous owner could no longer care for her. She is the most outgoing of the group. When we take the trio outdoors for a bit of Colorado sun and fresh grass, she is always the first to start chomp'n away and exploring. She is also the largest of our Russian tortoises. Her hobbies include eating grass, wandering around in the yard (supervised, of course) and digging in her substrate.

This cute little girl is Ages. She is also a rescue tortoise who needed a new home. Ages is our most "reserved" Russian tortoise; she's a little on the shy side. When we take the tortoises out, she is usually the last to venture out of her "shell" and explore. Once she gets moving, though, she really gets moving! One sunny, Sunday afternoon when we brought the tortoise trio out in the yard, one of my daughters followed her around for about an hour as she "speedily" crawled from one end of the yard to the other and back again. Ages is our smallest Russian tortoise and likes to be held, hide under things and bask in the spot light, when the other two tortoises aren't hogging it up.

This is Eon, our very first Russian tortoise. Sebastian got him for his 8th birthday from a pet store...something we don't really recommend. It's much better to rescue an animal in need than purchase one from a pet store, but, way back then, we did not realize how many animals like Eon were in need of new homes. Eon is a very confident tortoise who, in spite of Era's boisterous personality, is the leader of our Russian tortoise trio. He has enjoyed a wide variety of habitats since we brought him home, including a large storage tub, a small train table turned tortoise table, a huge fish stand turned tortoise table and now, the trio's permanent home, a custom built tortoise table with a viewing window and second-level watering hole. Eon has a few scars on his carapace (shell) from an old Golden Retriever who thought he might be a fun rock to chew on. Eon was a little bewildered at this encounter, but seems emotionally fine now. :) Eon's favorite food is romaine lettuce (an occasional treat for the tortoises during the winter) and he has learned to "beg" for food when he sees us come into the room. He enjoys the great outdoors (after an initial warm up period) and nice long soaks in a bowl.

Tortoise make great, long-lived pets. In our opinion, they are the best pet reptile to have! They are relatively easy to care for (proper lighting, moisture and diet are very important) and fun to watch. They do live for a long time, so be prepared to care for them for decades. Some people have even needed to leave their beloved pet tortoise in their will to someone who can care for it!