arachyd

Yes, they are G. aureostriata. I love mine but I think a bearded dragon would eat way more roaches if it ever became a big overpopulation problem. Hmmm....I think you need a beardie too....just in case......

I've heard a lot of stories but the most plausible seems to be that the bigger breeders fed their stock food from the same supplier. That food had somehow been treated with an insect growth regulator (used to prevent pest insects from infesting grain in storage) and it caused the mealworms to stop breeding. Luckily for us we breed our own. There are other stories but that one made the most sense to me.

You could also check with your local zoos. Many exotic animals require a varied diet and for some, roaches would be a welcome treat they don't usually get. A lot of the smaller zoos are often strapped for cash as the weather gets colder and they have fewer visitors so your offer might be more welcome than you'd expect. Even just letting the zoos know you have spare roaches could help in the event of a problem with their usual sources (like the mealworm problem that has been going on recently).

Darn. The H. miles cost about twice as much

Just an update, the H. miles did the job. If I have another mite problem I'll try the A. fallacis to see how they do. It never hurts to be familiar with more than one remedy.

"...and basket weavers who sit and smile and twiddle their thumbs and toes..." I love that song! Welcome! I was also an exterminator many years ago. I still don't like the roaches that look like the German Cockroach (small, fast, brown) but I do enjoy my dubias and tesselatas. Now I work in an office for a large agency and I'm the one they come to when something crawly gets in the building and they don't want to see it get stuck in a glue trap. I've managed to make a lot of people feel sympathetic (or guilty) enough that they'd rather give things a chance to be carried outside safely than squished.

My A. tesselata like to perch on the pothos plant in their enclosure. I'm not sure if they're eating it but it is their favorite plant (they have some others in there too) to hang out on.

That's one of the things I liked about them right away. No matter how much they hid I could always at least watch the substrate move and know they were ok. Now at least some of the adults are always out and usually there is at least one on top of the plants just hanging out. I guess it's time for a bigger enclosure if there are nymphs hiding in there.

Thanks, they must have been hiding. I looked at the adults and I was thinking, "Ouch, no way they're born that big". They have a sloped 4" to 6" substrate with plants - lots of room to hide.

Welcome! I was a certified pesticide applicator, termite inspector, etc. years ago. I've since changed my mind about tropical roaches (still have the same hatred for the pest species though).

I was just wondering how big they are when they're born. I noticed I have a couple more than I started with a few months ago but the smallest ones are a little bigger than a nickel. I had not seen them before yesterday. Do they hide deep in the substrate until they are that big or are they huge as nymphs too?

It's a shame with the way they monitor forums like this that one of them won't simply post the information to help us stay as law-abiding as possible.

Welcome It sounds like you have a nice collection already!

They really don't need it humid and don't need misting. Mine molt fine in a dry container. They aren't as fragile as Ts when molting. Their exos are much firmer.

It looks like it got squished during a molt while it was soft.

I was able to read some of the other stories but that one just won't come up for me. Oh, well. It's probably too much for my ancient pc.

I can't seem to find the link to read it.

Will it keep these colors?

This light-colored roach was in with my dubias. It doesn't look like any of my other species. Could someone ID it for me? Sorry for the bad pic, I keep them in clouded plastic bins and it would not let me get a pic from above. It is black with light yellowish-tan stripes (or vice versa). The markings on the head are orange and black with a clear tan border. The dubia tend to show themselves occasionally and hide most of the time but I can always count on seeing this one out in the open.

My G. lurida spend all their time hiding unless I disturb them. Then 1 or 2 will make a couple of quick runs (less than a 2" run) across the top of the substrate and dive back unerneath. I've tried wet and dry and moderate dampness. High and low humidity. Light, gloom and dark have been tried. I tried giving them some sphagnum moss cover so they would feel secure enough to come out at least a little bit-nope. My first batch of them matured with some nice yellow markings but were all female and died barren, still hiding under the substrate. My next batch seems to be clinging to nymph-hood with a vengeance. The little colony is basically a pet jar of substrate.

They might be isopods. Some people use them for tank maintenance. I suppose if you use your imagination a bit they could look like centipedes. Usually they are a grey color but there are lots of variations. Do they look like this at all? Some have a more rounded back end but most are similar.

My dubia and tesselata love grapefruit pulp and original flavored Milkbone dog biscuits. They always finish off the grapefruit and chew big holes in the Milkbones. They like apple pieces, tropical fish flakes, Gerber barley baby cereal, instant potato flakes, ground up rabbit food (alfalfa pellets), dried pumpkin seeds and Purina 1 chicken/rice dog food. They sort of eat carrots but it's not a favorite. They want nothing to do with either iceberg or romaine lettuce or lambsquarters (wild spinach). If I accidentally wet their paper tubes they eat the damp parts.

Beautiful!

Hello and welcome!

Another consideration is whether you plan on feeding off the adults or if you will be feeding nymphs to your pets. If you will be feeding off the nymphs they won't take so long to grow but you want to make sure to let enough mature to keep the colony growing. I hear of a lot of people raising at least 2 kinds of feeders-smaller, fast breeding like lateralis and large, slow breeding like dubia. If one is not sufficient you can use the other and switch back and forth as needed. It also gives your pets some variety.