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African Bullet Roaches!


Zephyr

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Alright, at some point I considered not even getting these guys, mainly because they're small, quick, and somewhat pricey. Good thing I got them! These are now one of my favorite roach species! The adults have a nifty little social order, they have very attractive blood-red spots (that are incredibly hard to photograph, might I add :P), and they reproduce incredibly well! Definitely a new favorite of mine...

The roaches:

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The enclosure:

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Mama with ooth:

sdc13881.jpg

The colors:

sdc13886.jpg

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  • 3 months later...

Are they feeders or part of the hobby?

I can almost "feel" they breed fast.......

They breed fast like most other roaches but only if they're warm. They don't do so well at cooler temps.

**Also, I don't recommend them as feeders since they have a defense odor that smells like tomato plants, which are toxic to many animals. It's probably nothing to worry about but I don't want to take any chances personally.

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I don't have these guys in culture yet, but they're definitely on my wish list. Has anyone figured out what species these are yet? I heard from an entomologist friend of mine who wishes to remain anonymous that these may be (Neostylopyga rufimarginata). Has anyone else heard this or any other proposed names?

Mark

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I don't have these guys in culture yet, but they're definitely on my wish list. Has anyone figured out what species these are yet? I heard from an entomologist friend of mine who wishes to remain anonymous that these may be (Pseudoderopeltis fulvornata). Has anyone else heard this or any other proposed names?

Mark

I've heard that they could be Bantua robusta, but apparently this is a live-bearing species so the two cannot be the same.

Maybe there's a clue in the scientific name as to what that roach looks like?

False-Deropeltis... Something ornate. These don't seem to be related to Deropeltis; they seem more like Paratemntopteryx couloniana to me (similar leg structure) and they don't seem particularly ornate...

*EDIT- Fulvous apparently is a red-ish color stemming from the Latin word fulvus.

So this could be the "False-Deropeltis decorated with red." Maybe they are that species? Then again, some characteristics of that genus would be nice to know.

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Funny... I once was thrilled to get them. Cultured them forever as they are VERY easy and multiply quickly with slight neglect. Decided I was done with them though and froze the whole bin a few days ago. Keep them going though! One day the may be in big demand (the ones I get rid of bite my backside that way....)

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  • 4 months later...

I'm not sure how long they take to hatch, but I'd guess a couple of months. It probably depends on temperature and I move my cages around a few times each year and don't take notes. Six months ago I moved mine to a cooler part of the room because the population was growing too quickly. I love this species as a feeder because they don't burrow and they hatch out as small as fruit flies, growing to the size of an adult cricket. The odor is not so bad, even with a bucket full of them...certainly not as bad as skunk roaches (which aren't that bad either, in my opinion). If you stir them up, you'll smell them though. I've fed them to lots of things without issue.

Also, fulvous is usually more in reference to a yellowish color.

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I'm not sure how long they take to hatch, but I'd guess a couple of months. It probably depends on temperature and I move my cages around a few times each year and don't take notes. Six months ago I moved mine to a cooler part of the room because the population was growing too quickly. I love this species as a feeder because they don't burrow and they hatch out as small as fruit flies, growing to the size of an adult cricket. The odor is not so bad, even with a bucket full of them...certainly not as bad as skunk roaches (which aren't that bad either, in my opinion). If you stir them up, you'll smell them though. I've fed them to lots of things without issue.

Also, fulvous is usually more in reference to a yellowish color.

Thanks Peter.

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