Madagascar Hissing Cockroach questions

[isopodgeek]

I just put bought a male and female from my local petco. I did research but have some questions.

1. At what temperatures do they breed?
2. How many babies do they have?
3. How long do babies take to mature?
4. How often do I spray them?
5. Will they find each other in a 12x12x18 exi terra?
6. How is my setup?

7. Is this roach pregnant?

 

[BoyFromLA]

Hissing roaches can climb glass wall with no problem, that being said, they can fall and hurt while climbing if the enclosure is too tall.

 

[isopodgeek]

Hissing roaches can climb glass wall with no problem, that being said, they can fall and hurt while climbing if the enclosure is too tall.

Didn't think of that, would a 6 quart container be good for two?

 

[isopodgeek]

I took your advice and here is my new enclosure! Thank you!

 

[goliathusdavid]

I have had a lot of experience with Hissers and have found the best setup to be bins like these:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Ezy-Sto...oof-Clear-Latch-Tote-IP-67-FBA34064/314733555

Line the bottom of the bin with paper towels and then diagonally stack six or so egg crates to increase surface area. Mist once or twice daily, and provide calcium fortified cricket gel as an additional source of hydration. I change the breeders I work with weekly, though they can truthfully go a little longer than this. That setup is also for big (like 400) roach colonies so you might use a smaller bin and you will not have to change it nearly as often. A 6qt container however, seems more than a little small.

In terrarium setups, I provide a few inches of moist substrate and lot's or cork bark (as well as some egg cartons here and there. Terrariums should definitely be longer horizontally than vertically so I don't think your current setup is ideal.

As for whether that female is pregnant, she certainly looks it, though I cannot say with definitive certainty. Ideal breeding conditions are temps above 75 degrees, and a single ootheca can produce anywhere from 30-50 babies. Some die off among babies is normal, so don't blame yourself. Babies take around 7 months to mature.

 

[isopodgeek]

I have had a lot of experience with Hissers and have found the best setup to be bins like these:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Ezy-Sto...oof-Clear-Latch-Tote-IP-67-FBA34064/314733555

Line the bottom of the bin with paper towels and then diagonally stack six or so egg crates to increase surface area. Mist once or twice daily, and provide calcium fortified cricket gel as an additional source of hydration. I change the breeders I work with weekly, though they can truthfully go a little longer than this. That setup is also for big (like 400) roach colonies so you might use a smaller bin and you will not have to change it nearly as often. A 6qt container however, seems more than a little small.

In terrarium setups, I provide a few inches of moist substrate and lot's or cork bark (as well as some egg cartons here and there. Terrariums should definitely be longer horizontally than vertically so I don't think your current setup is ideal.

As for whether that female is pregnant, she certainly looks it, though I cannot say with definitive certainty. Ideal breeding conditions are temps above 75 degrees, and a single ootheca can produce anywhere from 30-50 babies. Some die off among babies is normal, so don't blame yourself. Babies take around 7 months to mature.

Thank you! I was just at petco and they are having their dollar per gallon sale. I can by a 20 long for $20! I really want to make a naturalistic vivarium for these awesome animals.

Would I be able to use isopods as a clean up crew for the roaches?

 

[goliathusdavid]

That sounds like an AMAZING sale!

I would not recommend mixing isopods and roaches. Especially as most available isopods do not share habitats with hissers (or most roach species in general to be honest). Isopods would also require a composite substrate and have slightly different care requirements. I am also unsure whether the presence of isopods might affect breeding. Therefore I would advise keeping them separate.

 

[isopodgeek]

That sounds like an AMAZING sale!

I would not recommend mixing isopods and roaches. Especially as most available isopods do not share habitats with hissers (or most roach species in general to be honest). Isopods would also require a composite substrate and have slightly different care requirements. I am also unsure whether the presence of isopods might affect breeding. Therefore I would advise keeping them separate.

That is unfortunate as I thought it would be cool to keep those two together. Then again, the most important part of this hobby is the well being of the animal. I hope to create the terrain soon and will post a picture once finished. If I can not use Isopods, what will my clean up crew be?

 

[goliathusdavid]

To be honest, I wouldn't keep one. That is my approach, and the approach of the scientific institutions I have worked with. It means you will have to clean the enclosure more often (which with a large colony can be a slightly burdensome weekly task) but I honestly think it is better that housing hissers with animals they would never encounter in the wild, which may or may not interfere in their breeding and welfare of the colony. As for the hissers themselves, they come with a delightful crew of mites that are giving them a cleaning 24\7. If however, you really do feel a cleaning crew is necessary I know Buffalo Beetles (Alphitobius diaperinus) have been housed with many roach species fairly successfully.

I am going to be open in my slightly controversial position on bioactive tanks: with a few exceptions I think you will almost always have more breeding success in roach and millipede colonies if try for non-bioactive. I say try, because springtails are just naturally going to get into everything, which is fine. I have one bioactive tank (of species that naturally cohabitate) but keep the rest of my millipedes and roaches housed in individual colonies, following the example of the institutions I work with.

 

[RoachCoach]

You can and probably should have a moderate neutral substrate. Isopods/beetles will be beneficial. Be very wary if you use dermestid. They tend to be a Mjolnir on a finishing nail. Buffalo beetles are your best bet. I could have sent you a few full grown breeders just for the cost of shipping if you planned to keep them proper. Once they get going the temp and humidity will be of little concern. They will breed out of control if you provide food and shelter. I tried dropping the temp to my bin to like 60 degrees to slow them but they only just ramped up. They love bananas and wet bread btw.

 

[isopodgeek]

I really want to make a bioactive enclosure for these roaches. I am going to get a 20 gallon long later and set it up.

I am on a tight budget (spent way to much on this hobby in the last five weeks) so I can’t buy a whole lot. If I just use eco earth will that be ok?

Also, I know that most beetles need a permit in order to keep them. Does this also apply to Buffalo Beetles?

 

[goliathusdavid]

Eco Earth will do totally fine for Hissers, they get no nutrition from their substrate. As for permits I had been under the impression that they were in the 2020 list of exemptions, but a closer inspection revealed that they are still regulated. So yes, they would require permits.

 

[isopodgeek]

Well, I guess she was pregnant!

 

[goliathusdavid]

Congratulations! And again @isopodgeek I'm sorry for missing the info on the other thread. I hope this will be the first of many groups of nymphs for you!

 

[isopodgeek]

Congratulations! And again @isopodgeek I'm sorry for missing the info on the other thread. I hope this will be the first of many groups of nymphs for you!

Thank you

 

[DiscoidsNHissers]

Congrats on the little ones, I just finally had mine almost a month ago and taking many pictures for reference of how the instars look (so I can kind of guess at a glance how far along they are and because I cannot find a picture guide online).

I use eco earth and my insects love it. As for cleaning, I might make it bioactive but not until AFTER April because it's cold here and I don't want dead bug shipments. For now what I do is "spot clean" by grabbing anything that looks nasty and once a month put everyone in a separate container (with a lid so I don't get runaways) and take out all the old substrate and put in a fresh load. In fact, that's how I found my babies the first time, they were hiding under the cork bark logs!

 

[Matts inverts]

Buffalo Beatles are naturalized so no permit is needed but I would just get small isopods