Depth of burial of nymphs

[Daniel Patón]

Best regards. I would like to ask if anyone has information on the depth at which nymphs of different species are buried. In a large bucket in which I accumulate blatticompost I have observed that Pycnoscelus can appear up to 50 cm deep but do not reach the bottom of the bucket which is at 65 cm.  The Eublaberus go down to 25 cm. Has anyone observed this in Eupolyphaga, Hemiblabera or other species?. Thanks 

 

[coop]

Hi there,

What subtrate is in your bucket? I keep a colony of Pycnoscelus nigra, basically P. surinamensis but black. I've found that in a 100% coir substrate that has a moisture content allowing for clumping, burrowing doesn't exceed ~10cm. In these conditions they may build burrows. But in looser, drier substrate, the burrowing is much deeper. I'm guessing this is due to air availability and potentially crowding. If heavy moisture is accumulating at the bottom of your bucket, your roaches may prefer to stay further from the bottom.

 

[Daniel Patón]

Dear coop: The substrate I use is forest humus and leaf litter. It is really quite loose. Thanks