my hisser tank idea!

[fangsalot]

so ive been looking around the web and ive seen alot of how hissers are generally kept,mainly in bins.i understand its more for convinience but ive never been the kind of person who kept my animals in less than natural setups,well i try anyway..so,,i decided to (actually i was bored)plan on an enclosure that mimics what there natural home is in madagascar on the forest floor at night.using this idea http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWI0q3hWRYs im going to set up something like this

what do you guys think?

 

[Scoolman]

That is awesome, I like it. My set up is similar to that, but more simplistic. I just have a single rtting log, ecoearth/peat humus substrate amd moss.
I want to do my 20L set-up like your diagram when I move them.

 

[fangsalot]

thanks!the "wood" is going to actually be cement covered styrofoam,think that would be a problem with the roaches?

 

[Scoolman]

thanks!the "wood" is going to actually be cement covered styrofoam,think that would be a problem with the roaches?

Should they managed to get through the cement, they will eat the styrofoam. get some oak, cork bark, or mopani wood.

 

[fangsalot]

Should they managed to get through the cement, they will eat the styrofoam. get some oak, cork bark, or mopani wood.

the wood is going to look kind of like this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cV9M45WuG2g. if 100,000 roaches dont eat through that,,i might be okim trying to replicate the baobab tree from madagascar so i have to make it myself

 

[EightLeggedFrea]

the wood is going to look kind of like this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cV9M45WuG2g. if 100,000 roaches dont eat through that,,i might be okim trying to replicate the baobab tree from madagascar so i have to make it myself

That there's a lotta roaches. I've got some hissers coming this week, but I'll be breeding em for feeders. As for your theorized set-up, it looks like you've got a good idea and it looks like it would make a good display. Hope it works out well.

 

[zonbonzovi]

I've been tossing the same idea around, but need something escape proof. I agree about the styrofoam(?). I've had roaches and millies just rip right through that stuff, esp. the spray foam. I like the root system look you're shooting for. You could prob. get away with some well cured driftwood if your using a screen top.

 

[blash]

Hello, keeping hissers in bins is not only a question of convenience but also a way to deal with their fast breeding.

I guess it depends on your plans, do you want to start with a pair of hissers? Or do you start with 50 pairs? I started with 200, they quadruple each month. How long would they be abled to live in your bin. How many hissers can hide in that carved out wood? Do you want to use them as feeders or sell them?

I do not kill, sell or use mine as feeders so the only way to keep them is a huge bin, filled with egg crates.

 

[fangsalot]

Hello, keeping hissers in bins is not only a question of convenience but also a way to deal with their fast breeding.

I guess it depends on your plans, do you want to start with a pair of hissers? Or do you start with 50 pairs? I started with 200, they quadruple each month. How long would they be abled to live in your bin. How many hissers can hide in that carved out wood? Do you want to use them as feeders or sell them?

I do not kill, sell or use mine as feeders so the only way to keep them is a huge bin, filled with egg crates.

im starting with 15 med nymphs.im keeping them as pets,,and when and i get a explosion of roaches,i might go with the bin thing,but still keep a good amount in the display enclosure.

 

[Scoolman]

im starting with 15 med nymphs.im keeping them as pets,,and when and i get a explosion of roaches,i might go with the bin thing,but still keep a good amount in the display enclosure.

I like that idea. I think I will go that route if (when) I get overrun.

 

[OxDionysus]

They are not fast breeders at all. With 15 med nymphs you're looking at like 2 years before you had to worry about a bin. =)

 

[ZephAmp]

They are not fast breeders at all. With 15 med nymphs you're looking at like 2 years before you had to worry about a bin. =)

I beg to differ. Given proper temperatures and conditions, 15 medium nymphs can create many, many more nymphs once they mature.
I had 1.2 at the beginning of last summer.
I now have something along the line of a couple hundred big, strong adults.

 

[Beardo]

I agree that their reproduction rate is vastly underestimated.....when you get an established group that is decent size, they keep up in terms of production with the Lobster Roaches I have lol.

 

[Scoolman]

They are sexually mature at 6 months. 10 females dropping 20 nymphs each every 40 days would produce 120 nymphs in 6 months with the first 20 getting ready to start dropping their own nympns. Now you have 30 mature hissers, the next month 50, the next month 70, and evry month produces more nymphs at a rate of 400 every two months after the firt 6 months passes. Exponential increase creating a population explosion in one year's time. This is of course perfect breeding with zero die off, and no premature deaths but, you get the idea.
I feed bout 10-15 nympsh per week, and about 4-8 juveniles per week and I have not even put a dent in my small population. I also noticed many new nymphs the last couple days, and no less than 12 gravid females. It won't be long before I start selling off surplus to the LPS.