Hell-Spawn

Whatever happened with this?

Any updates?

They are in a tiny sealed jar with the saltwater soaked sand I collected them on. Once I get home I will put them in a larger enclosure with some driftwood and more sand, and some fresh veggies and oak leaves. Will eventually get to the petstore for marine salt since I have been told about Orin's experience regarding them. They are quite interesting and fast and I did not know about them until two days ago.

Adults look to be an inch long, but no way to measure right now as I'm traveling today.

I don't know exact care requirements, but they were on the shore crawling amongst the driftwood. They are bigger than any isopod I've seen before, and faster, so they fascinated me me. They were VERY difficult to catch. I had to dive at them and catch 'em one at a time. Just wanted to guage interest since I'm in jacksonville for a few more hours. Wondering if I should let them go or if anybody would actually culture these guys.

Would anybody be into some marine isopods I collected in Florida?

I see oak chunks for sale for smoking during grilling, to flavor the beef. But it's expensive.

Thank you! I have a Lowe's and a Home Depot on either side of me. Now what about oak chunks?

Hmmm, if that's the case, what do you recommend? Where should I get safe (Cypress?) mulch that's not going to break the bank. That or hardwood/oak pieces to throw into my medium.

(I realize this is a very old topic, I just don't see a point in making a new one) My town has an area for the residents to pickup free mulch. If I go grab some and photograph it would you guys be able to tell me what kind it is and whether it's good to go for my enclosures???

Excellent write up, very helpful and thorough. Quick question - why do you do the aluminum vent in addition to the no-see-um netting? Couldn't you just glue the netting down?

What is their life cycle and lifespan?

Thank you.

I ripped these pictures from Facebook. Is this a cockroach? Only info given is it's from Trinidad, and photo credit to Alvin Braswell.

These are rather affordable at Target, in-person. Trying to do what I normally lazily do is look it up online, like on amazon or ebay, a lot of people will factor in shipping into the price so it'll be $20-$30 a pop shipped, and that gets crazy. Plus ebay seems to be big on the 4 and 6-packs, which, I don't need to spend $100 on roach bins. I just don't. Got two 20 quart and two 50 quart bins today for $33 with a $5 off coupon. I can tell you the coupon code you need to text if you plan to use it soon (no idea when that expires, but I saw the flyer for the coupon IN one of the 50 quart bins on the shelf).

What should we use for a rack? Metal? To avoid fire? I've always wondered how so many people confidently use the heat tape. I suppose it works good, I just have carpetting all over my apartment and it boggles my mind.

How much did the bin cost you? Great writeup and pictures by the way. Very helpful; appreciated.

I don't think I understand the barrier situation. Foil and plastic wrap with holes in it?? Do you have a picture? What's the theory behind that?

My thought was differntialis as well, thanks. And yep, I have a couple more shots:

Very curious about this topic. Please post updates.

Caught in NY. Are these differential grasshoppers? Are they toxic, like a lubber?

This species doesn't secret a defensive chemical like the skunk roach, does it?

Yes, the heat is essential for the Blaberus. When I kept discoidalis and giganteus they simply wouldn't reproduce until I raised temps above 75 degrees. The giganteus or hybrids (wasn't ever quite sure) absolutely despised light but were active if I kept their tub under a desk in the shade.

Do you have a link?

When I kept P. nivea, I kept them completely different than my other roaches. They were kept in a shoebox where I now keep my termites. NO ventilation whatsoever. Completely moist earth from the backyard mixed with ecoearth/cocofiber. It was wet to the touch. The roaches all went underground and only emerged from the burrows (the surface looked like the landscape of the moon) when green leaves were placed on top for feeding. I do NOT think P. nivea are a good display roach given how much they enjoy seclusion and the dark. I kept them for about 8 months, and only kept them as feeders. So my experience is limited, but they bred quite well in my care. I also forgot to mention the most irritating thing about them! They can climb almost everything, and they're one of the few that can FLY (not just flutter-fall, but actually fly). They're hard to catch escapees, and their legs irritate the heck out of the skin if you grab them wrong. I would not keep any roach with dart frogs. Dart frogs need nearly 100% humidity and big open areas with light for the plants. Also, if you forego feeding protein to the roaches for a week or two they'll turn on the frogs if they can.