11/16/2022: Ectobius pallidus in the cold room

Last year marked my first success with multiple generations of Ectobius pallidus. This is a finicky ectobiid introduced to the midwest from Europe, although interestingly the genus is believed to have evolved in North America before migrating to Europe and going extinct at its origins.

To get the subadult-ish nymphs to mature, they must be chilled for about 2 months. Last time, I put the entire culture in my refrigerator, but there’s currently not enough room there with other projects that needed cooling. So, this time I’d like to see if putting them in the unheated spare bedroom will be enough to satiate their diapause requirements.

Several other Ectobius are introduced to North America around the midwest and refining husbandry on pallidus in a practical manner will be excellent preparation for when those others are collected or made available.

-Kyle