Hello all,
I've been lurking for a good while, but haven't gotten around to introducing myself yet. I am a behaviorist/zoologist/comparative psychologist. I do some research in invertebrate learning and behavior, and I also use them sometimes for classroom demonstrations. My advisor traditionally used honey bees, but I have grown fond of roaches. You can actually handle them without getting stung (which kills the bee) and you can use them year round. They are just more fun than bees in pretty much everyday. Expect more on roach learning and behavior stuff later.
I have 100 or so Gromphadorhina portentosa from Fluker's Farms (or at least G. portensosa-like hybrids). I lost count of how many Panchlora nivea I have (from Roach Crossing). They didn't do well at first, but once I figured out a good setup, the population exploded. I've also been catching brown-banded and american roaches at school. The brown banded roaches are already all over the place in my building, so I might as well have some in a container right? When it gets warm enough to ship I might get more species of hisser and some glowspot roaches.
I'm finally posting because I have something interesting to share. Check out this roach. It is a gynandromorph hisser! The first few pictures are before molt, and the last few are after molt. I'm not sure what molt it is on, but I suspect it has a few left. Notice that after the recent molt the male side has developed a horn and a feathered antennae. Unfortunately the roach's genitals now hang out. Hopefully that won't lead to any complications. I'm not sure what to expect in terms of lifespan and future molts but I'll do my best to take care of it.
/monthly_03_2015/post-5425-0-15215100-1425683338_thumb.jpg
/monthly_03_2015/post-5425-0-90087600-1425683341_thumb.jpg
I've been lurking for a good while, but haven't gotten around to introducing myself yet. I am a behaviorist/zoologist/comparative psychologist. I do some research in invertebrate learning and behavior, and I also use them sometimes for classroom demonstrations. My advisor traditionally used honey bees, but I have grown fond of roaches. You can actually handle them without getting stung (which kills the bee) and you can use them year round. They are just more fun than bees in pretty much everyday. Expect more on roach learning and behavior stuff later.
I have 100 or so Gromphadorhina portentosa from Fluker's Farms (or at least G. portensosa-like hybrids). I lost count of how many Panchlora nivea I have (from Roach Crossing). They didn't do well at first, but once I figured out a good setup, the population exploded. I've also been catching brown-banded and american roaches at school. The brown banded roaches are already all over the place in my building, so I might as well have some in a container right? When it gets warm enough to ship I might get more species of hisser and some glowspot roaches.
I'm finally posting because I have something interesting to share. Check out this roach. It is a gynandromorph hisser! The first few pictures are before molt, and the last few are after molt. I'm not sure what molt it is on, but I suspect it has a few left. Notice that after the recent molt the male side has developed a horn and a feathered antennae. Unfortunately the roach's genitals now hang out. Hopefully that won't lead to any complications. I'm not sure what to expect in terms of lifespan and future molts but I'll do my best to take care of it.
/monthly_03_2015/post-5425-0-15215100-1425683338_thumb.jpg
/monthly_03_2015/post-5425-0-90087600-1425683341_thumb.jpg
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I wonder if that specimen is able to reproduce.