I can't decide which roach species I want...

P

Petastic

Second Instar
Blaberus discoidalis - Panchlora nivea - Pycnoscelus surinamensis

Discoids, banana roaches, or surinams. What am I looking for? A feeder species, one that breeds well, easy to care for, and cool to watch. I just can't decide...but by the end of Christmas I'll have a couple hundred bucks to burn. Roaches for Christmas huh? What a wonderful present...LOL. Surinams are last of the list, I know where I can get a few hundred. They are here but I can't find enough adults to start a colony up. Panchlora nivea, a really neat almost 'pet' species. They are relatively expensive though, but bugsincyberspace (Peter Clausen) has a good deal for 2 dozen nymphs for 20$. Do they breed well? How fast? Discoids are at the top of the list. Aaron pauling will ship here, and I can get a good starter colony for 74$. (50 adults, 100 mixed sizes) Same thing, do discoids breed well? Easy care?

 
They all breed fast if cared for properly. As for surinames- why do you need adults? Nypmhs mature quickly and the adults will reproduce quickly- faster than most species. If you can get a couple hundred, then you already have a colony.

 
I agree with Matt, if you can find a large culture of nymphs then you have yourself a starter colony. As for which to pick, I would say it depends on what you're feeding. Discoid can get pretty large, nearly three inches or so, I've never had Surinams before so I have idea of their size, and P. nivea is tiny, at best an inch...but are a very beautiful species. Have you ever thought of using everyones favorite Blaptica dubia? Or if you're feeding large species off, true Blaberus craniifer make a great pet/show/large feeder species.

 
vfox said:
I agree with Matt, if you can find a large culture of nymphs then you have yourself a starter colony. As for which to pick, I would say it depends on what you're feeding. Discoid can get pretty large, nearly three inches or so, I've never had Surinams before so I have idea of their size, and P. nivea is tiny, at best an inch...but are a very beautiful species. Have you ever thought of using everyones favorite Blaptica dubia? Or if you're feeding large species off, true Blaberus craniifer make a great pet/show/large feeder species.
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It's usually a lone surinam nymph or adult here and there. It would take weeks of daily searching to get a couple dozen worth starting a colony. Blaptica dubia are awesome. I had an accidental colony a few years back, that sadly was destroyed by a raccoon on the only night I had the colony out. Otherwise they are illegal, and I'd rather have some legal/something someone can actually ship to me. I'm feeding chickens and ducks - extra protein. Also leopard geckos and mantids. A 3 inch roach is nothing for the birds, a nymph or two would be fine for the leos I assume, same for my mantids. Surinams have been crossed off, I might as well try to get some my own. I might get a small culture of P. nivea. Might being the key word. But for now Discoids seem to be what I need. And going from that...can anyone walk me through the care of Discoids? Same as dubia, or is there more?

 
I take back what I said about the surinams - just scored 50+ nymphs and 2 adults. Not bad from what I usually get. I still want discoids though.

 
Petastic said:
I take back what I said about the surinams - just scored 50+ nymphs and 2 adults. Not bad from what I usually get. I still want discoids though.
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If you need even more, try going to Ft. Lauderdale. On one stretch of beach my friends and I could find 100 surinams per square yard.

 
Zephyr said:
If you need even more, try going to Ft. Lauderdale. On one stretch of beach my friends and I could find 100 surinams per square yard.
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Sounds great. How's you experience been with this species? (Your Zephamps on arachnoboards, right? Lord of Ants here!)

 
You guys and your different board names lol. Always Vfox, meh. Anyway, my discoids are super easy to care for. Just keep above 75 F and maintain constant fresh fruit, dry dog food, and water gel. They will do exceptionally well.

 
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Petastic said:
Sounds great. How's you experience been with this species? (Your Zephamps on arachnoboards, right? Lord of Ants here!)
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Yep, at's me. :P

As long as you make sure they can't get out they will thrive. (And when they get out the only problem you could possibly have with them is them colonizing other roach bins.) They need a substrate to thrive but they aren't picky about what type.

 
Matt K said:
Not to mention: Aren't they parthenogenetic? ;)
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I believe so, even though there is a strain that isn't. Every adult I've seen has had an oothecae inside it. (A gentle push to the abdomen can usually reveal the pearly white case, release and it retracts)

 
Why not Blaberus craniifer? They're actually from Florida (the three you mention are adventives) and they're pretty.

 
The heck with this...I just found someone who lives 30 miles from me and can give me 500 mixed DUBIA for $50!!! :D

 
Blaptica dubia is a good medium sized feeder. The are somewhat soft, and very meaty. I've never noticed a smell with them, and if the cage is kept clean and them well fed you'll be overcrowded yourself soon. They are one of my favorite feeders, even though I rarely feed them off lol.

 
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