- Joined
- Jul 22, 2004
- Messages
- 372
Since this is a subject that's been popping up lately, I figured I would post something. I've only known of one species that will significantly darken due to poor diet, and this would be harlequins (Neostylopyga rhombifolia). I got a batch from a different supplier, and they were so dark, at first I thought they were a different species. Every single one of them was dark.
This is a normal harlequin:
And here are the dark ones I got:
nymph
adult
Notice how some of the patterning is completely darkened out, and how the legs are dark as well. One thing that struck me was that what pattern remaining on the nymphs was a very shiny golden color. On the adults, the pattern was very muted, like a coffee color as opposed to the cream color in normal harlequins.
I kept them separate from my normal colony. I'm pretty sure poor diet was the main cause because after a few months in my care, the nymphs molted into normal looking harlequins. The adults though were stuck as they were.
To further confirm this, I took a sample from my original colony and didn't feed them well. They still had food in their colony, but they didn't have fresh food. After a while, they darkened as well, and looked pretty much just like the dark ones pictured above. But after a few months back on a regular diet, they became normal again.
I've seen a lot of unhealthy, poorly fed roaches, and while it's evident by their behavior, presence of cannibalism/wing-biting, and overall dull appearance, significant darkening of the colors doesn't happen that often. Complete darkening of the colors doesn't happen either. I've never seen hissers turn black because of diet, and the only way I could see that being proved is if the entire colony turns black.
This is a normal harlequin:
And here are the dark ones I got:
nymph
adult
Notice how some of the patterning is completely darkened out, and how the legs are dark as well. One thing that struck me was that what pattern remaining on the nymphs was a very shiny golden color. On the adults, the pattern was very muted, like a coffee color as opposed to the cream color in normal harlequins.
I kept them separate from my normal colony. I'm pretty sure poor diet was the main cause because after a few months in my care, the nymphs molted into normal looking harlequins. The adults though were stuck as they were.
To further confirm this, I took a sample from my original colony and didn't feed them well. They still had food in their colony, but they didn't have fresh food. After a while, they darkened as well, and looked pretty much just like the dark ones pictured above. But after a few months back on a regular diet, they became normal again.
I've seen a lot of unhealthy, poorly fed roaches, and while it's evident by their behavior, presence of cannibalism/wing-biting, and overall dull appearance, significant darkening of the colors doesn't happen that often. Complete darkening of the colors doesn't happen either. I've never seen hissers turn black because of diet, and the only way I could see that being proved is if the entire colony turns black.
