Dermestid Beetles | Starter Colony
Live dermestid beetles may not be available consistently approaching the peak work season. Please sign up to receive notifications of the next availability if out of stock.
Live insects ship Mondays before 10am; this is a scheduled shipment. Orders placed after 10am will ship the following Monday unless advised otherwise with a fulfilment/shipment email.
Changes to price- we now only ship individually built colonies. These colonies are built in their own individual containers and maintained by feeding, water and cleaning. These individual colonies are approximately 400 mixed individual beetles, larvae and pupa.
This allows the buyer to establish and maintain their own large colony through breeding their beetles.
These beetles are not particularly bred for reptile or bird food therefore they won't be refrigerated, they're captive bred for cleaning a carcass of it's soft tissue.
If the buyer is not paying for EXPRESS shipping, all beetle orders are non-refundable.
We take no responsibility for beetles that do not survive transit.
It is recommended you buy and pay for live insects as a separate shipment from other items. Purchasing combination shipments with other items is done at your own risk.
Visit for housing, care & breeding info: https://www.thecuriosityshop.net/dermis
Can ship to ALL states; however, WA requires an import permit. This permit is $30, and you can apply with the link provided below.
We require a copy before beetles are shipped.
Find permit forms here: https://wlc.dbca.wa.gov.au/
TASMANIA- All insects can be shipped from me in Tasmania to anywhere else within Tasmania. Live insects cannot be returned to Tasmania from the mainland due to restrictions on animal and vegetation contamination. All live insects coming into Tasmania must pass inspections and have a certain amount of time to be quarantined while inspections take place. This can take a few weeks; therefore, the welfare of the insects during this time is in jeopardy. If they do not pass the inspection, the insects need to be destroyed. If there are prohibited animals or vegetation hidden within, some penalties may apply without appropriate documents.
Please bear in mind initial numbers will multiply rapidly within weeks with the proper care. A mixed colony of 75 individuals can turn into 100s within 6 weeks. Some colonies can reach 10,000 individuals. These colonies can quickly become unmanageable if feeding demands cannot be kept up. Hungry, crowded beetles can look for ways to escape. A small colony is one to be built and nurtured and is best suited for 50L enclosures or less. Selecting a larger colony for a small enclosure is done so at your own risk; as stated above, we cannot take excess beetles back into Tasmania.
*Our information is based on Tasmania biosecurity laws only. Copying/pasting our state's information to your dermestid listing can result in misleading or false information in other states.
Dermestid beetles, which can also be commonly known as hide beetles, are fantastic little death eaters!
These beetles will not only pick the meat from the bone, but they're delicate in nature, leaving your skeleton almost exactly intact in the position you placed it.
A large dermestid colony can pick a chicken carcass clean in 48 hours. Although becoming a large, healthy colony does require work and patience.
Dermestids are quick reproducers, and, under the right conditions, a colony of just 30 adult beetles can turn into 3000 in a month.
Our beetles are bred in captivity for the purpose of bone cleaning and being "pets".
These are not collected from outdoors and live in controlled, monitored conditions.
We do not feed these beetles anything but fresh meats purchased for human consumption, so there is no risk of pollution from other insects or parasites.
This allows us to continue to ship Australia-wide without the risk of potential biohazards.
We have raised and sold dermestids for over 2 years. We make sure we are up to date with biosecurity laws and information that is necessary to not only give these live animals the life they deserve but also to keep Australia safe from any potential risk of contamination from, unbeknownst to us, foreign parasites, insects or mites.
Our cautiousness and care for our beetles ensures that the customer gets a healthy and happy colony. We work hard to treat these animals with the respect and care they need, and we hope you in turn can do the same by making sure you're ready to accept these new little critters into your home with the proper maintenance and feeding. We have included information such as enclosure, bedding, breeding and feeding for you to read, especially if this is your first time.
Being dedicated dermestid breeders, we have learned so much about these insects and their habits, and I'm sure we still have a lot more to learn from them, so we will update this page as often as needed.
To read more on getting started and dermestid beetle information, please click here.
