The Ultimate Guide to Breeding Beetles: Coleoptera Laboratory Culture Methods

The Ultimate Guide to Beetles is truly just that. Ultimate! This is a must have book for anyone from beginner to full blown coleopterist. It is a wealth of information from a well known and highly respected author in the invertebrate hobby. The book is very easy to read for even the non scientific casual hobbyist and contains all the "tips and tricks" needed to keep, breed and successfully raise a multitude of species. Everything from Cetoniidae to Dynastidae, Rutelinae to Tenebrionidae, this book truly covers it all! Included in the book are several chapters on some very rarely kept species about which husbandry information is virtually nonexistent. For a great many years beetle breeding has been very popular in numerous Asian countries (namely Japan and Taiwan) and in parts of western Europe, much the same way the tropical fish hobby is popular in the U.S. In these countries you can find beetle specialty shops where everything required for beetle breeding is readily available much the same way fish food, filters, water conditioner and the like can be found in the states for the fish hobby. Now unfortunately no stores like this exist at the moment in the U.S. and virtually all literature on the hobby is based on the assumption that the reader has access to everything already made and available at the local beetle shop. This makes it very hard to try and fill in the necessary gaps (food, substrate, wood/leaf choice etc.) of breeding in the U.S. This is the only book specifically made for the hobbyist who doesn't have access to anything prepackaged and shows in great detail how to do everything yourself. I've been waiting for countless years for a book of this caliber to come to the U.S. hobby and the wait is finally over! Thank you Orin for making this hobby accessible to everyone!Cheers,Greg Collins

Orin has been a wonderful resources for our bug keeping needs. This book (beetles) is full of gobs of info on tons of species - wild collected or captive bred (there isn't a lot of other sources for info on keeping wild collected species in any serious capacity).I have been exceptionally happy with this book.One thing to be aware of, this is not a cook book. In the case of care of most of the species treated in this book you will have to read and reread the appropriate section, take notes, and formalize a plan on how to prepare and perform the care. It is not full of lists of the materials you will need, nor lists of steps, nor easy to reference charts on temperatures, humidity, and development times.

This is a great book for any level of Coleopterist! Most of the information in the book is spot on. This information can be used to start someone off in the hobby and to improve the methods of an experienced Coleopterist as well! 2 thumbs up for this book! It is jam-packed with awesome pictures and breeding information for a wide variety of species. Some species mentioned in the book have not been bred by many breeders. This book is innovative and accurate! 5 stars!

The book is a bit informal but provides plenty of information. The only complaint I really have is that it doesn't show examples of the techniques being described. Instead there are just a bunch of pictures of the beetles. It would be a lot better if we could get a good visual idea of what is being described instead of being forced to use our imagination. Overall it's a good book and very informative. The guy knows his stuff.

McMonigle's materials contain some of the most detailed info on inverts available today. They are for the most part based upon solid first-hand experience rather than high-flying academic interpolation. A must for any serious hobbyist!

Excellent book. If you are interested in anything to do with bugs, arachnids, inverts, yo cannot go wrong with Orin's books. They're a valuable addition to anyone's invert library. Excellent resource for information and great pictures.

Quite informative, would preffer if it had some more step-by-step tutorials on stuff like making fermented substrate and rotted logs but other then that very informative even for someone not inside the us :)

Really glad I got this book, it really lays everything out for you. It tells you all you need to know about getting into breeding beetles. Highly recommend.

A very well written and detailed book!

I'm really am (still reading) enjoying this book. Other than just breeding information, it's a treasure to more information on the beetles.

I have got this book as a one of my Christmas presents and was not disappointed :). This book has excellent description of the variety of species of exotic tropical and Southern American beetles popular in beetle breeding enthusiasts. It also has plenty advices on housing, breeding, larva rearing and many specific practical notes that is often difficult to find online on the internet. I found this book both interesting and useful for my own beetle breeding experience. The book has plenty of photos and specific information on popular beetles groups such as various stag, flower and rhino beetles. I was also pleasantly surprised to find information about breeding other beetle groups such as dung beetles, jewel scarabs, darkling beetles and others. I think that this book would be a useful guide for anyone interested in beetle breeding.

The book is a great ressource for beetle enthusiasts. Unfortunately, mine came with an unexpected preface..."Ninja Potty Break"! A whole children's book has been included as well, after which McMonigle's book starts. I wonder if all other copies of this lot have the same error...

For those interested in keeping beetles this is a fantastic reference book. The book is full of useful and in depth advise for keeping a wide range of beetles from Stags to Dung beetles. There are some chapters in the book that a UK reader will not find particularly useful but the rest is "jam packed" with useful information that's hard to find online.Although a little pricey this book is a must have purchase for anyone interested in this fascinating hobby.