My Roaches

Hisserdude

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I'm betting the nymphs mimic something else. Possibly juvenile assassin bugs?
Probably, and it would appear that Panesthia nymphs attempt to mimic the same model... There's something poisonous or with a nasty bite widespread across Asia that has an orange spot on it's back that these roach genera are mimicking. 😂
 

schmiggle

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Might also be infra-red or UV imitation that only shows up to us as an orange spot, even if the orange spot's not present on the model.

Also, might the nymphs be toxic but the adults not? I know efts of eastern newts are much more brightly colored than the adults and much more toxic, though of course the big difference is that efts and adults basically don't overlap in terms of microhabitat (efts are terrestrial, adults are aquatic).
 

Hisserdude

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Might also be infra-red or UV imitation that only shows up to us as an orange spot, even if the orange spot's not present on the model.

Also, might the nymphs be toxic but the adults not? I know efts of eastern newts are much more brightly colored than the adults and much more toxic, though of course the big difference is that efts and adults basically don't overlap in terms of microhabitat (efts are terrestrial, adults are aquatic).
Yeah, could be! 😄

I don't think so, at least with Paranauphoeta I know people who have used them as feeders for their geckos and stuff with no issues, they seem to be perfectly edible. I'd assume the same would be true for Panesthia, but since those are so slow growing and breeding I don't think anyone's tried using them as feeders before. 😂
 

schmiggle

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Yeah, could be! 😄

I don't think so, at least with Paranauphoeta I know people who have used them as feeders for their geckos and stuff with no issues, they seem to be perfectly edible. I'd assume the same would be true for Panesthia, but since those are so slow growing and breeding I don't think anyone's tried using them as feeders before. 😂
Actually, I have a guess--what about fireflies? They're toxic, and many have a red spot on the back and are otherwise black. They're also very numerous in Southeast Asia. See, for example: https://flic.kr/p/7V2XDL
Lemme know if I'm polluting your thread or whatever.
 

MrGhostMantis

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Actually, I have a guess--what about fireflies? They're toxic, and many have a red spot on the back and are otherwise black. They're also very numerous in Southeast Asia. See, for example: https://flic.kr/p/7V2XDL
Lemme know if I'm polluting your thread or whatever.
Sheesh, had to avert my eyes from that. Why a picture during such a private moment!? So many peeping toms in the insect world. 😂
 

Hisserdude

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Actually, I have a guess--what about fireflies? They're toxic, and many have a red spot on the back and are otherwise black. They're also very numerous in Southeast Asia. See, for example: https://flic.kr/p/7V2XDL
Lemme know if I'm polluting your thread or whatever.
Could be, though Paranauphoeta spend most of their time under bark, and Panesthia nymphs deep in rotten logs, so I'd expect the thing they mimic would also be found in those same habitats... Which still makes me think they must be mimicking assassin bug nymphs or something.
 

ErinM31

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Gorgeous photos as always and congrats on all of the amazing new (to me at least) species! =D

How are the Pseudoglomeris cf magnifica “China Gold” doing? Would you recommend the genus or species in particular? I’m considering getting some of the green ones but wondered why I’d not seen them in the hobby more. P. magnifica sound more demanding than typical (and thank you for posting the great care guides on your blog!) but not so difficult as those beautiful white roaches we tried several years ago.
 
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Arthroverts

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If you look at this blog post of his you can see what happened with the P. cf. magnifica "Gold". Unfortunately it doesn't seem like they will last all that much longer here in the US.

Thanks,

Arthroverts
 

Hisserdude

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Gorgeous photos as always and congrats on all of the amazing new (to me at least) species! =D

How are the Pseudoglomeris cf magnifica “China Gold” doing? Would you recommend the genus or species in particular? I’m considering getting some of the green ones but wondered why I’d not seen them in the hobby more. P. magnifica sound more demanding than typical (and thank you for posting the great care guides on your blog!) but not so difficult as those beautiful white roaches we tried several years ago.
Unfortunately like @Arthroverts said, it seems the Chinese golds will die out here in the US, seems like there are likely some odd seasonal cues needed to breed these that we aren't yet aware of... The Vietnam green stock is exceedingly easy for a Perisphaerinae though, pretty dang hardy and much better established in the worldwide hobby. :) They just need a TON of ventilation to breed at a decent rate, something most Perisphaerinae share in common. People also probably tend to oversell from their cultures as soon as they start breeding, which can cripple colonies in the long run, that plus the demand and supply are why they are still so expensive here, (whereas in Europe you can get starter cultures for like 40 euros...).
 

Hisserdude

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Balta notulata
Nymph:



Adult:









Perisphaerus pygmaeus:











Princisia vanwaerebeki "Big" (hopefully pure stock)
Adult females:











L1 nymphs:



Salganea taiwanensis taiwanensis
Adults and subadult nymph:







 

Hisserdude

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Hemithyrsocera palliata (I have TONS of these BTW, in case anyone is interested in this species):





 

Edward

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I'm sure you're asked this all the time, but what do your current enclosures look like (either in general or for a random given species). Do you have general guidelines you follow for keeping more obscure species? Love your photos and collection, thanks for sharing!
 

ErinM31

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If you look at this blog post of his you can see what happened with the P. cf. magnifica "Gold". Unfortunately it doesn't seem like they will last all that much longer here in the US.

Thanks,

Arthroverts
Unfortunately like @Arthroverts said, it seems the Chinese golds will die out here in the US, seems like there are likely some odd seasonal cues needed to breed these that we aren't yet aware of... The Vietnam green stock is exceedingly easy for a Perisphaerinae though, pretty dang hardy and much better established in the worldwide hobby. :) They just need a TON of ventilation to breed at a decent rate, something most Perisphaerinae share in common. People also probably tend to oversell from their cultures as soon as they start breeding, which can cripple colonies in the long run, that plus the demand and supply are why they are still so expensive here, (whereas in Europe you can get starter cultures for like 40 euros...).
Thank you both for the info and sorry that the P. cf magnifica “Gold” did not do well! It can be quite frustrating and perplexing trying to find what conditions will bring about each stage to successfully produce offspring. I’ve had millipede species which were keen enough to mate but never laid eggs so far as I ever found and one that did seemed to require debris from particular trees! Those Vietnamese green metallic roaches are gorgeous too — I shall definitely have to get some when I have more space and funds…

In the nearer future, I need to collect and start a colony of the local Arenivaga roaches before all my forest is replaced with hideous subdivisions. :( We had both tried keeping them several years ago but I think the difficulty was ventilation? I know I kept mine in a plastic shoebox style container and would now try an Exo Terra box.
 

ErinM31

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@Hisserdude gorgeous photos as always! :happy: And I see you’re keeping hissers again; I have always enjoyed mine.

Those Hemithyrsocera palliata are really pretty! It sounds like it could be difficult to prevent escapes though if the nymphs too can climb and they tend to congregate around the lid (from what I read in your blog). I’ve had young hissers escape but at least most seem content to hide in and under wood pieces with the rest of the colony.
 
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Hisserdude

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They love to eat Bedbugs
You'd be hard pressed to find Parcoblatta living indoors for longer than a week, let alone eating bed bugs lol...

What're you, a fascist?

Great pictures as always--keep up the good work
LOL when it comes to hissers I guess you could call me a purist. :p Sadly, pure Princisia are on the cusp of dying out completely in the US thanks to being outcompeted by their hybrid cousins, which are rarely as unique looking as the pure stocks. :(

Thanks, appreciate it! :)

Thank you both for the info and sorry that the P. cf magnifica “Gold” did not do well! It can be quite frustrating and perplexing trying to find what conditions will bring about each stage to successfully produce offspring. I’ve had millipede species which were keen enough to mate but never laid eggs so far as I ever found and one that did seemed to require debris from particular trees! Those Vietnamese green metallic roaches are gorgeous too — I shall definitely have to get some when I have more space and funds…

In the nearer future, I need to collect and start a colony of the local Arenivaga roaches before all my forest is replaced with hideous subdivisions. :( We had both tried keeping them several years ago but I think the difficulty was ventilation? I know I kept mine in a plastic shoebox style container and would now try an Exo Terra box.
Yeah, it's unfortunate, but I'm sure someone will bring the golds into the US again sooner or later, just need to figure out how exactly to culture them. The Vietnam greens are great though and relatively easy to culture IMO, so definitely a good choice for the roach enthusiast. :)

Oh that sucks, sorry to hear about the deforestation. :( The Arenivaga bolliana I got from you bred great for me, and my buddy is still maintaining that culture all these years later. They just need tons of ventilation to avoid fungal infections, yeah.

@Hisserdude gorgeous photos as always! :happy: And I see your keeping hissers again; I have always enjoyed mine.

Those Hemithyrsocera palliata are really pretty! It sounds like it could be difficult to prevent escapes though if the nymphs too can climb and they tend to congregate around the lid (from what I read in your blog). I’ve had young hissers escape but at least most seem content to hide in and under wood pieces with the rest of the colony.
Thanks! :D And yup, I'm back to keeping hissers, so far just pure (or hopefully pure) stock of rarer, less prolific species. Very enjoyable for sure!

Yeah, they are beautiful, kind of a pain to contain though for sure, always have to bang on the lid a bunch before opening their enclosure to feed them, (right now they're in a gallon jar). I also have a feeding port plugged with sponge for feeding as well, this works great for Ectobiids usually, though this species in particular will congregate around said sponge... Still, they are beautiful and would work great as feeders for mantids and other arboreal predators IMO!
 

Hisserdude

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I'm sure you're asked this all the time, but what do your current enclosures look like (either in general or for a random given species). Do you have general guidelines you follow for keeping more obscure species? Love your photos and collection, thanks for sharing!
Not very pretty LOL, just bins with lots of small holes poked in them with a soldering iron. For substrate I use coco fiber for almost every roach species I've ever kept, and hides consist of bark, leaf litter, eggcrates, paper towel hides and sometimes just the substrate itself, all depends on the species' preferences, as not all roaches will accept the same types of hides. Hard to have general guidelines when it comes to obscure species in general, more like I have general guidelines for each family or subfamily of cockroach, because they all vary so much in care.

For example, take the subfamily Corydiidae. Corydiids are usually burrowers and enjoy access to both bone dry and humid substrate, the exact ratio of each depends on the species and will be learned over time by seeing where they hang out the most. They also generally either appreciate or absolutely need leaf litter in their diet, but also need protein based foods to grow fast. This group is the one I rarely offer fruits or veggies to as they are just barely nibbled on compared to leaf litter or protein based foods. They seem to do best when well ventilated, and some species need a TON of ventilation to avoid fungal infections.

I use guidelines like that for specific subfamilies that we've learned from keeping more commonly bred species, and then apply them to new or obscure members of the same family, with adjustments being made as I observe how the roaches react to their environment and see what they prefer. Sometimes roaches will die during this trial and error, but in the long run it's worth it to figure out proper husbandry and then get them established in the hobby.
 

Hisserdude

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My Lucihormetica grossei (Mega Glowspots) and Ancaudellia hamifera have both bred for me! :D

Lucihormetica babies:









Ancaudellia babies:





 
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