Weird - albino cricket !

[JeffreH]

Interesting thought Grif - Herps do have pretty amazing eyes; and some species of reptile have superficial pineal glands that allow them to 'see' UVB/C spectra in addition to UVA rays.

I do believe most frogs can distinguish color fairly well; and just as you say it can vary species to species. I recall a short film (the name eludes me) that was introduced to me during a lecture on perception and conditioning to an extent, where a toad refused to eat a hornet after being stung, and still refusing to eat anything yellow and black with warning coloration. Nocturnal species for example must have also exceptional vision in the night but UVA may not be as readily available... in this case a white insect against a dark background to create a contrast is going to be a prime target I would imagine. I'm really only hypothesizing myself though = )

I've also had reptiles show preferences to colored meals - or have no problem feeding on soldier grubs or silkworms who are also white in coloration. My bearded dragon prefers things that are red in color, making the E. posticus roach nymphs and certain red fruits such as raspberry particularly appealing to him, lol.

[Whistly]

That is a observation and thought, but a lot of amphibians and reptiles see not only normal light, but UVA radiation as well. If the crickets lose the pigmentation that reflects the UVA radiation it may make them more difficult to find. This would of course not be true for all species. Its still a very interesting thought.

I didn't have a clue about this. It's true you do learn something new just not everday lol

[GrifTheGreat]

Interesting thought Grif - Herps do have pretty amazing eyes; and some species of reptile have superficial pineal glands that allow them to 'see' UVB/C spectra in addition to UVA rays.

I do believe most frogs can distinguish color fairly well; and just as you say it can vary species to species. I recall a short film (the name eludes me) that was introduced to me during a lecture on perception and conditioning to an extent, where a toad refused to eat a hornet after being stung, and still refusing to eat anything yellow and black with warning coloration. Nocturnal species for example must have also exceptional vision in the night but UVA may not be as readily available... in this case a white insect against a dark background to create a contrast is going to be a prime target I would imagine. I'm really only hypothesizing myself though = )

I've also had reptiles show preferences to colored meals - or have no problem feeding on soldier grubs or silkworms who are also white in coloration. My bearded dragon prefers things that are red in color, making the E. posticus roach nymphs and certain red fruits such as raspberry particularly appealing to him, lol.

Interesting thought Grif - Herps do have pretty amazing eyes; and some species of reptile have superficial pineal glands that allow them to 'see' UVB/C spectra in addition to UVA rays.

I do believe most frogs can distinguish color fairly well; and just as you say it can vary species to species. I recall a short film (the name eludes me) that was introduced to me during a lecture on perception and conditioning to an extent, where a toad refused to eat a hornet after being stung, and still refusing to eat anything yellow and black with warning coloration. Nocturnal species for example must have also exceptional vision in the night but UVA may not be as readily available... in this case a white insect against a dark background to create a contrast is going to be a prime target I would imagine. I'm really only hypothesizing myself though = )

I've also had reptiles show preferences to colored meals - or have no problem feeding on soldier grubs or silkworms who are also white in coloration. My bearded dragon prefers things that are red in color, making the E. posticus roach nymphs and certain red fruits such as raspberry particularly appealing to him, lol.

Thank you Jeff

Yes indeed with nocturnal species they have exceptional eyes. I've noticed my Pacman frogs going after Calcium dusted crickets much sooner than undusted. Whether in darkness or under infrared light. I've seen a few videos about amphibian and reptile hunting and camoflage. Like how some snakes especially pit vipers have infrared sensors(nostel like hole in the face) hence the name. Some frogs can use UVA pigmentation in their skin to reflect the radiation making them completely invisible to predators who see UVA rays. By reflecting the same rays as the leaf they are sleeping on the blend in completely with the leaf. I have noticed when using a moonlight bulb that my frogs were not as interested in the food item regardless of color. A good sence of smell plays a huge role in this as we'll and with how bad crickets smell ha ha! Should be easy prey.

None the less I do believe this to be an interesting cricket and if he has softer chitin and a brighter color would make an excellent addition to a already well used feeder. Problem is that recessive genes are not always dominant when it comes to offspring, but you never know. Lynn might get a mixed batch.

[JeffreH]

Yeah, unforunately miss Lynn is going to have to do a full out science fair project for us if she wishes to pursue it, LOL = )

Only way to truly tell will be holding back all offspring, keeping them separate, and allowing them to only breed with one another if they do not show the father's characteristics. Surely with the amount of offspring that are produced, an F2 baby will be born that shows the trait if it is genetic and Recessive. If not, then we can be fairly confident that it is not genetic... and Lynn just spent a lot of time setting up cricket palaces for 'nothing' =D

<3 Lynn for giving this a fair run, lol.

On another fun note about breeding insects for traits: did you know that that the species of silkworm (Bombyx mori) that we feed to our herps has been reared in captivity for so long for their silk that they would not thrive in the wild and require our care to survive? The moths lost the ability to fly, and the larvae literally sit there staring at the sky waiting for mulberry to fall upon them. Not to mention they are incredibly prone to infection and handling food (and them) usually must be done with sterile gloves... I bred them for awhile many years ago and found them most amusing, but they are just too much work and cost compared to roaches, heh.

[GrifTheGreat]

Yeah, unforunately miss Lynn is going to have to do a full out science fair project for us if she wishes to pursue it, LOL = )

Only way to truly tell will be holding back all offspring, keeping them separate, and allowing them to only breed with one another if they do not show the father's characteristics. Surely with the amount of offspring that are produced, an F2 baby will be born that shows the trait if it is genetic and Recessive. If not, then we can be fairly confident that it is not genetic... and Lynn just spent a lot of time setting up cricket palaces for 'nothing' =D

<3 Lynn for giving this a fair run, lol.

On another fun note about breeding insects for traits: did you know that that the species of silkworm (Bombyx mori) that we feed to our herps has been reared in captivity for so long for their silk that they would not thrive in the wild and require our care to survive? The moths lost the ability to fly, and the larvae literally sit there staring at the sky waiting for mulberry to fall upon them. Not to mention they are incredibly prone to infection and handling food (and them) usually must be done with sterile gloves... I bred them for awhile many years ago and found them most amusing, but they are just too much work and cost compared to roaches, heh.

Poor Lynn Lol! I think she will have fun doing the special breeding.

I did not know that we have bred that species completely into captivity. Odd to have an entire species domesticated. So does that mean that the adults pass their memories to the offspring? Since they probably wait for mulberry to fall to them because we bring it to them so they think if they wait it will just come to them. That's very odd. I'm not as surprised with the inability for adults to fly. There are similar animals that lose abilities in captivity from years of captive breeding. Flamingos for example in captivity if they are not fed a steady diet of the shrimp they eat in the wild they are white not pink. They get their pink color from the shrimp they eat and if they don't eat shrimp then there will be White flamingos and not Pink Flamingos. Diet and genetics. This has been an interesting thread.