u/Independent-King4880

hi! i have a vacant enclosure (16 inch edge to edge 22 inch height hexagon) and have been thinking about getting a beetle or mantis to live there. i’ve never owned an invertebrate before but ive been researching a small amount and i haven’t found anyone who seems able to fit in that size of enclosure comfortably. are there any somewhat large beetles or mantids that can live in an enclosure like that? i’m an absolute beginner so any tips are appreciated. thanks!

hi! i have a vacant enclosure (16 inch edge to edge 22 inch height hexagon) and have been thinking about getting a beetle or mantis to live there. i’ve never owned an invertebrate before but ive been researching a small amount and i haven’t found anyone who seems able to fit in that size of enclosure comfortably. are there any somewhat large beetles or mantids that can live in an enclosure like that? i’m an absolute beginner so any tips are appreciated. thanks!

hi everyone!
i am 16 and just getting back into snakes. when i was much younger (10ish) i had some cresties and a corn snake and therefore have a good amount of materials left over - a 18.5x12.5x36 tank, some decorations, and many, many quarts of tropical substrate, plus some reptile chips. i would love a smaller guy, i have been really looking into kenyan sand boas and they seem great, im just not sure about the enclosure needs as id like to use as much of the stuff i already have as possible. ideally i would like to make a bio active enclosure/vivarium setup and i saw some people saying you can mix tropical substrate with sand for ksbs - is that true, and any other tips about arid bioactives? i also just had the pleasure of seeing some wild smooth green snakes and pretty much fell in love but its my understanding that they’re hard to come across and pretty picky guys, so is there anyone similarly green and small? my unrealistic but ideal snake would be a small, colorful, handleable guy that can thrive in tropical settings, although i doubt a snake like that exists outside of my brain. i also have a somewhat large vertical hexagonal enclosure (don’t know the exact measurements) and would love to hear some lizard recs if anyone comes up with some along the way; i adore sandfish as a terrestrial option but they seem few and far between and i think its unkind to hold them, and something like a tokay would be a cool arboreal option. please ask clarifying questions where needed, im pretty rusty about reptiles! thanks in advance

edit: i have also briefly looked at japanese rat snakes and they’re super cute, but id love some insight as to their needs and how their temperament tends to be. or just thoughts in general!