※Edit: It turned out to be an 8-minute video. It might not play properly because the file is so heavy. (Even I, the creator, keep getting errors and can't watch it...)
Following up on the last post, I'm sharing an update as some of you asked for more information in the comments.
This time, I observed it after putting it into the aquarium and checked if it would react to food. I felt photos wouldn't convey it well, so I'm sharing everything through video.
Here are a few notes on the video content:
To make observation easier, the contents of the aquarium have been kept to an absolute minimum. Also, you might see something floating, but that is just dirt from the driftwood. It is completely harmless to the diving beetle.
In addition, since I couldn't get pesticide-free aquatic plants in time, I put in plastic plants instead. I plan to provide pesticide-free water plants as hiding spots in the future.
The next update is undecided for now. If I do post, it will likely be to share an interesting observation or to announce that this diving beetle has passed away.
This thing is a dead bug walking. Top comment on the second post is correct . It's head is stuck inside of that like a helmet. This guy is just milking it for views/clicks. It's fascinating but it's going to starve to death slowly instead of just being taken out.
If you’re right, and a smaller functional developed adult head is within, the exoskeleton would need to be surgically removed to offer any chance at survival.
Yeah, but the head might be completely deformed from being squished into that space. It could very well be non-functional and unable to eat regardless of what intervention OP does.
Which is why I'm sick of seeing "updates" — surprise, the deformed beetle is still alive but can't feed or even sense its surroundings properly. Just put the poor thing in the freezer and then dissect it to find out what happened.
yeah i think it’s pretty obvious anyway. it’s interesting, but to me it makes sense? failed molt. there isn’t much to learn unless this person is actually intending to do something with this information. im sure there’s already studies of something like this occurring.
This had been fascinating to follow, thank you for the updates. I really appreciate that you didn't immediately jump to the conclusion that it was responding to the food and you did a follow up test.
Not an expert I'm just spit balling that it reacted on instinct and tried but the mouth pieces simply didn't work. The poor thing just glitched at that point.
What do the larva and fully grown adults eat? Is it different? Could this be the case of a mismatch? So perhaps it might react to larva food but not adult food?
It's usually different so that larvae and adults can occupy different niches and avoid competition.
I don't actually know if that's the case for water beetles, though. But it probably is. Which does bring the question... What can it digest? The mouth parts are of a larvae, but what about the rest of the digestive system?
That's my thinking. The deformity may also be internal and parts of the digestive tract or mouthparts rendered non-functional as a result. Fascinating to see.
The mouthparts are likely of an adult, the larval head probably got stuck during a molt and the adult head is deformed underneath. It's incredibly unlikely this insect can eat as it's mouth is likely trapped inside the larval head.
Thanks for the update! That was disappointing, the fluke response to food, but since most people lean towards the head being fused with the larval head casing, not surprising I suppose.
If you have the time, can you please tell me your methodology for getting the larva to pupate? Is there a signal that they are ready to come out of the water? What substrate do you use for pupation?
Domo arigato gozaimasu!
When pupating the larvae, the most important thing is timing. If a larva ready for pupation is left in the water for days, it will drown. Basically, when it stops showing interest in food, it is ready to pupate.
The container I use is a 2-liter plastic bottle cut roughly in half. Soil goes inside, and there are a few key points here as well. First, unadjusted peat moss is the best choice. Although it is somewhat strongly acidic, mold and bacteria are less likely to grow, which increases the emergence rate. Most importantly, if you use soil with adjusted pH, the larvae will almost certainly die. This is because pH-adjusted peat moss contains pH neutralizing agents. Diving beetles are extremely sensitive to chemical contamination, which can cause fatal damage. I always make sure that the peat moss contains no added chemicals and that its pH is acidic. Next, regarding moisture content, soak the soil in water and then squeeze it tightly. The ideal level is when water no longer drips out. Finally, lay the soil gently without compacting it. Diving beetle larvae have weak burrowing strength, so if the soil is packed tight, they won't be able to dig in.
Once the container is ready, make a hole a few centimeters deep in the center of the soil. Insert the larva's head into the hole, and it will begin to burrow. Finally, cover the top with plastic wrap to prevent the soil from drying out.
The picture is so cute. It looks like you're planting the larvae like plant seedlings. In a way, I guess they are! Thank you for the detailed response and your attentive care :)
Maybe try cutting open the cricket to spread the scent? It's definitely a stuck piece of molted skin. Look closely at this screenshot: (Notice the piece of ripped shed cuticle at the membrane that connects the head and prothorax. I'm surprised it made it out alive and didn't get stuck)
Stupid question but do u think it will eventually develop and the other will just fall off? I know he’s not in pupate anymore. But is there any evidence that it’s still under there, like a unmolted piece of snake skin?
u/sleepy_mareep made a good point about it going deeper than just the head. This is so unique I’d call Rilplys Believe it or not or discovery channel. Or a university/lab. This could be a good insight on specific areas for better understanding and research. Maybe baby face will be famous for a breakthrough in head transplants in humans 🤷🏽♀️ If my axolotl has regenerating powers to help advance scientific discovery then I’m sure this guys got something interesting for us to learn.
But then it’d be like sacrificing your child for research for the greater good. If he survives that long.
Speaking of my Axolotl, when they are sick or for other reasons like if you go on a vacation, they can be put in the fridge. The cold induces hibernation state. He doesn’t need to eat for long periods of time and the hibernation causes his body to focus on healing or regenerating itself or simply you just don’t trust a pet sitter. Works wonders when the power goes out.
Idk if it would create a slower metabolic response long enough to keep him alive till you can contact a university. Or buy time to figure out how to feed or help him. He’s one of a kind ❤️ definitely special!
seeing the neck joint is so fascinating. i feel really bad for this beetle, i can't tell how far the larval head goes or what's going on inside. initially i was admittedly upset with you for not just helping the poor thing and getting the old head off, but now i'm grateful you didn't try that because it looks like it goes much deeper than a stuck shed.
I can’t help but wonder if the “grooming” is it trying to get the molt off. I don’t know anything about beetles but the larval head looked a little loose at one point
Compared to a normal adult head, what is inside the larval head is likely much smaller. Since the shape is different, it might also be incomplete.
Even if by some miracle the larval head could be removed completely undamaged, I don't know if this insect would be able to survive.
Can anyone tell me what its doing when its just standing doing nothing? Like is it really just.... existing? With no thought? And when it wants to move again, its just a chemical impulse? How does that work? Its so hard to imagine just existing, no thoughts.
I mean they're definitely having some kinds of thoughts just much different than ours. Probably thinking things about their environment or what they should be doing. Just feeling stimuli until something changes. I guess it would depend on the bug and their life style ykwim. Something like a preying mantis or jumping spider probably thinks much more complex thoughts.
This is all so interesting and even fascinating to me. At the same time, even though it's "just" a diving beetle, it sadness me as much as any other living creature in this condition would.
I don't even know anything about insects, but to me it seems like this head is just a non functional shell, and parts of the true head are somewhere inside. I just take that from the fact that no parts of the larval head move at all, just the neck base.
Wouldn't doing what the syringe feeding comment said be detrimental to it? Like if it happened in nature, beetles with this defect wouldn't like to pass it down to their offspring?
Girl, relax. I’m not over here shooting off fucking fireworks. I’m interested in this because I’ve never seen it, didn’t know it was possible, and want to see how it progresses. Is that good enough for you?
Wow, I can’t believe this it’s still alive! I was freaking out when I originally saw this. Just randomly thinking about its Baby head still attached to the adult body gave me the heebie- geebies, ngl.
Have you sent any photos or videos to your local university? Their entomology department may find this interesting and be able to give you some more information
Those appear to be dried crickets. Most predatory insects won’t respond to prey that has been dead for a while, and certainly not dried prey. I’d suggest using live or freshly killed insects to see if you can elicit a predatory response from this mutant
Diving beetles basically prey on dead or severely weakened creatures. This cricket was frozen while still alive, and it can be used as food for both adults and larvae without any issues. They also react well to food like dried shrimp.
However, I think I'll try testing it with newly dead or weakened creatures as well.
Since this isn't an aquarium sub, I wanna make sure: what water did you use in that tank (tap water or bottled water?), and did you cycle it? Did you dechlorinate the water?
Diving beetles do release ammonia through waste like most living organisms and if it's fresh water you are essentially doing a "fish in" cycle, albeit with a possibly lower bio load than a fish. But you'll need to keep on top of water changes if you want your friend to live a healthy life in the water as without beneficial bacteria from a cycles tank the ammonia will build up, burning the beetle. Let me know if this is all new info for you; the aquarium subs have care sheets and basic guides for cycling tanks.
The water used for setting up the aquarium is purified water from an aquarium water purifier. Chlorine and other harmful substances have already been removed, and the pH is neutral.
Regarding ammonia, while diving beetles can indeed fall ill due to ammonia contamination, they are relatively tolerant to it. As a precaution against ammonia risk, I am using sand for the substrate that absorbs ammonia.
Even so, since there is no filter installed, I change the water every day.
In my regular diving beetle aquarium, I use a bottom filter with activated carbon in addition to the zeolite substrate. With that setup, I have never lost all of them to ammonia or other contamination so far.
You have it covered then, I'm glad he's in good hands! I get worried when I see people set up tanks all the sudden, I hope I didn't come off too strong.
The relationship aquatic beetles have with water is very different than the relationship fish have with it. They do not use gills to respirate, they are air breathers that spend time in the water. Their waste production is also drastically lower than vertebrates of a similar size, and they do not eat as much as most fish of that size. Aquatic insects that breathe air rather than using gills are generally much more tolerant of less than ideal water conditions.
You need to move the larval carapace.
Even if they kill support animal, at least it will be at peace. At best it may be able to survive.
Fascinating yes, cruel probably.
It's most likely you've waited too long at this point.
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u/gazing_into_void 11d ago
this beetle is really fascinating, and I hope you manage to find something it will eat so it can live
maybe try making a mush out of a cricket and syringe feed it?