Best feeder roach

[Exo]

Since crickets are a pain to breed I am considering starting a roach colony.

The only problem is that I cant decide what species to get. I was thinking on either getting dubia or lateralis.I like the dubia because they are slow and don't need much humidity, but I like the lateralis because they are about the same size as crickets and breed fast. Which is better? :?

 

[aluras]

lateralis are small and easy to keep, They also breed REALLY FAST,,,,and unlike dubia and other larger roach species that HIDE or stop moving when a T is near and wait it out.....lateralis will keep running untill they are either eaten or find a good thing to hide under....If you keep them heated and fed you will end up selling them off because you wond have enough things to feed them to...Lateralis is my vote....although the larger roaches are fun to watch and hold.....and they are slower then the RED RACERS....Iv had both and prefer the lateralis.

 

[Dillon]

This question cannot be answered by anyone but you.

The Dubia are my choice.

Research both and find whats right for you.

 

[biomarine2000]

I went through the same thing not long ago. Do as stated above and do some research but nothing will tell you what you like more then experience. What I did is order some Dubia and Lateralis, the best of both worlds. I still have both. I hardly ever feed out of my dubia colony becuase they take FOREVER to breed. I mainly feed lateralis because theres never a lack of them. Good luck.

 

[evicton]

I keep both as well. Lats are really cheap and are a nice way to feed your T's while you wait for your dubia's to take off.

 

[gvfarns]

I have to agree with the posters supporting lateralis. They are the best staple. They are a little small, though, so if you have any larger T's or other animals, it could be good to have some larger roaches too. In my experience Blaberus bolivensis (or discoids if you don't find bolivensis) are better than dubia in the sense that they are more active and the tarantulas like them better.

 

[Exo]

Lateralis sound petty good because its like having crickets thet don't chirp, don't jump, and are easy to breed. If they get the size of crickets thats also good. I currently have one T and two desert hairy scorps but plan on getting more Ts. I also have a White's treefrog that could eat a roach a day,I just hope that they aren't to fast for my animals to catch.

How many lateralis would I need to start a small colony and how long untill I can start feeding them off?

Thanks.

 

[biomarine2000]

With you only having a tarantula and a few scorps I probably wouldn't do lats unless you are willing to sell them off. They breed like mad crazy once they get going. You will have so many roaches you wont know what to do with them. In my experience the dubia breed much slower. With that few of mouths to feed you could probably feed out of it immediately. 3 roaches a week isn't going to hurt the colony.

 

[Exo]

But I am also feeding a treefrog that eats every day or every other day.

Thats a roach a day for the frog alone, not to mention I plan on getting a few more Ts.

 

[biomarine2000]

If you have a tree frog then lats are for you. They climb right up tree limbs or whatever is in the cage. They wont burrow like dubia. The only draw back for you is that they will out breed what you can feed off. I have over 100 tarantulas and my colony well out does me.

I got my lats from Aaron Pauling. I started with 1000 and in no time I had thousands. Here is a link to his stuff for sale. You probably wont find a better deal on price.

http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=156474

Also here is a thread on how to care for and setup a roach colony. Its how I do it and it works great.

http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=56044

Good luck and I want to see some pics once you have your colony going.

 

[Exo]

I bet lats would be good for arborial Ts also, which is convenient, since my next T will most likely be an Avic. I just hope that they aren't too fast for my frog.

If they breed that fast, then I could always start with 200 to keep thier numbers in check.

 

[biomarine2000]

It does take a little while for them to start to breed. Probably at least a month if you have adult females laying eggs as soon as they get to you. I originally started out with 50 nymphs and it seemed like it took forever for them to grow up. What I did was just buy way more from Aaron. The more you buy right away the happier you will be and the less time you will have to wait for them to start breeding.

 

[Exo]

I'll start with 200 and supplement with petstore crickets for a month. My inverts don't eat much, so the frog is the only thing that needs to eat more than once a week. By the time I have enough roaches, I'll also have enough money for more Ts!

Plus, if they start to breed out of control I can always lower the temp a bit, right?

By the way, whats the ideal humidity % for lats anyway?

Thanks.

 

[gvfarns]

I wouldn't start with less than 500. That frog can eat a lot of roaches (it sounds like as many as like 20 tarantulas or so), and sometimes it takes a while to figure out the right conditions to get the roaches reproducing just right.

They are cheap. Just get 500 or 1000 and save yourself the hassle of supplementing with pet store stuff and waiting forever for them to grow up.

 

[biomarine2000]

Yup, I agree.

I wouldn't start with less than 500. That frog can eat a lot of roaches (it sounds like as many as like 20 tarantulas or so), and sometimes it takes a while to figure out the right conditions to get the roaches reproducing just right.

They are cheap. Just get 500 or 1000 and save yourself the hassle of supplementing with pet store stuff and waiting forever for them to grow up.

 

[Exo]

I know they need high humidity and most people use substrate for this reason, but it seems like it would be a pain to clean. couldn't I just reduce the ventilation and avoid using substrate alltogether?

 

[jmiller]

I know they need high humidity and most people use substrate for this reason, but it seems like it would be a pain to clean. couldn't I just reduce the ventilation and avoid using substrate alltogether?

Yes you can. I have never used substrate not do I mist in any way. I just keep the vents small and use a lot of water crystals.

 

[biomarine2000]

Yes you can. I have never used substrate not do I mist in any way. I just keep the vents small and use a lot of water crystals.

Do they tend to smell because of it? I have mine well venelated and hardly have a smell at all.

 

[Moltar]

I have dubs and lats. I like the dubia's more but my spiders definitely like the lats more. B lateralis are escape prone because they run so fast, they stink like hell when compared to the dubias and they breed too quickly. (yes I said it) They also are cannibalistic and will munch on a molting T. From a keepers perspective everything about B. dubia is preferable except the little bit about T's not wanting to eat them. All I really use dubias for anymore is feeding MM's to large T's and feeding tiny nymphs to slings who aren't good at taking fast moving prey yet. All the small-to-mid sized T's eat b lateralis and love them.

 

[Exo]

I'm gonna go with the lats.

I doubt the smell will bother me because I am used to dealing with crickets......noisey, jumpy, hard to breed crickets. :evil: