roaches (immediately) eat their dead?

[musihuto]

hi,

so i've had this lateralis colony for i guess two months now,
i open it up every three days or so to pick out oothecae, add food, water crystals, remove uneaten vegetable remains etc.
the puzzler is that i have not seen a single dead roach!
my question is, are they somehow incredibly healthy?
or are they cannibalized the instant they die (or perhaps even before, when they begin to exhibit signs of weakness) ?

thanks!
- munis

 

[Dom]

The reason you haven't found a dead lateralis is because they are bullet-proof.
I've produced thousands and the only dead I've found are ones that have been adult for 10- 12 months. Same goes for dubia, they just don't die.

 

[musihuto]

awesome. :clap:

cheers!
- munis

 

[Cirith Ungol]

Actually, yes. If you provide your lateralis with too little protein they will nibble on the dead and also on young moulters (which will obviously have a bad effect on your population growth).

Dubias arn't that prone to cannibalize, will do it only if they're really out of options, and eventhough their lifespan is a bit above average, in time you'll have quite a few deaths, in which case I recommend you pick out the corpses immediately because after a while they really start smelling horrid.