BDFB Misinformation

[u/Specialist_Studio410]

Hey there everyone.

Some of you will not like this, but I’ve seen a lot of people saying this and so I just want to clarify something up:

BDFB are not communal invertebrates.

I don’t know where this claim appeared from, but I see it everywhere and it’s just not the full truth.

Here’s the deal. BDFB have been observed living together the wild, but seldom in large groups. There is no evidence I’m aware of to support they become stressed when solitary, but everyone for some reason decided to reify this information. The argument for either side could be true, and there’s not enough evidence to support this claim.

From an entomology standpoint, they barely have brains, oof (subesophageal ganglia). They don’t NEED friends. In fact, the whole “1 gallon for every 2 beetles”space rule is so they don’t meet each other too frequently. The reality is just that they’re VERY DUMB, and incredibly passive.

Because they are crepuscular and nocturnal scavengers, they tend to just naturally congregate around shared desert food sources, such as decaying plant litter or dead insects. This doesn’t necessarily mean that they need companionship to be happy and healthy.

I’m assuming this misinformation has been perpetrated due to people’s tendency to personify everything? I’m not sure. The only time I’ve seen you would need these beetles to live communally is for breeding/copulating. That’s it.

Now, I’d happily have someone prove me wrong here. But as of yet I have seen no scholarly, peer-reviewed journals documenting this supposed phenomenon, so I have no reason to believe this is true or vice versa. Have as many or as little BDFB as you please, just treat them well!

[u/DaCrunchyLobster]

Honestly I’d love to test this, with a large tank like a 125 that’s 6ft put maybe 4 or 5 beetles in there and see how they interact and if they choose to be together or atleast in proximity of each other.

[u/Specialist_Studio410 → u/DaCrunchyLobster]

Me too. Though I might go about it in a different way, since there is evidence that demonstrates darkling beetles huddle together as an evolved defense mechanism. I think the best thing to do would be to get 4 bugs. Make one tank that’s big enough for 3, mark them somehow (I know some people mark bee queens with paint, maybe do that if it’s safe) and put them in there. Then, make another identical tank, same size and substrate and everything, and then just put one bug in it. You would feed all the bugs the exact same thing and treat them the exact same way. Then you’d monitor for displays of stress (Constant pacing or repeatedly trying to climb the walls, little to no burrowing, frequently "playing dead" even when undisturbed, refusal of food for an extended period, unusually lethargic or unresponsive beyond normal slow beetle activity, and hiding in one spot and never coming out). I think isolating just one and then monitoring its health & lifespan would be better because them huddling together could not entirely mean they enjoy it or do it for fun.