Roaches

[goReptiles]

I've tried dubia and discoid. I'm thinking about lateralis. They're just so much cheaper. I had my dubia colony going for a while, but it slowly started dying off. I don't have the finances to get a full colony again, and buying dubia or discoids on the regular just definitely isn't in the budget.

Are lateralis a pretty stable roach?

Are they a good feeder?

 

[T-ReXx]

I use lats and I think they make excellent feeders. Care is pretty much identical to dubia, the only difference being that you want slightly higher humidity to help with egg case hatching(I just mist them daily). They are also extremely fast moving so can be a little difficult to handle. But the geckos love them and they breed like crazy, faster than dubia. The adult size is similar to that of crickets so most geckos have no problems taking them.

 

[goReptiles]

Would I need bedding or just an empty tub? I didn't use bedding for the dubia.

How many would you suggest starting off with? I figure at least 1,000 probably 2,000, or should I test them first to see if my guys will eat them? Or just assume bc they've eaten the dubia, the lateralis will be fine?

Just trying to get my ducks in a row. Won't be buying them this month but maybe next month or so. I've got some big purchases I need to make first.

 

[T-ReXx]

Would I need bedding or just an empty tub? I didn't use bedding for the dubia.

How many would you suggest starting off with? I figure at least 1,000 probably 2,000, or should I test them first to see if my guys will eat them? Or just assume bc they've eaten the dubia, the lateralis will be fine?

Just trying to get my ducks in a row. Won't be buying them this month but maybe next month or so. I've got some big purchases I need to make first.

Yeah empty tub is the best route to take. Beddings just a pain for cleaning.

How many to start with depends on how fast you want a colony to get going and how many leos you plan on feeding. 2000 adult roaches will give you quadruple that in nymphs within 2-3 months. Nymphs generally take 3 months or so to reach adult size, but I usually feed half grown ones to adult leos. You can feed off your extra males of course, they're easy to recognize with the wings.

I feed my geckos an alternating routine of dubia, lateralis, and mealies, with supers every couple of weeks and I've never had any issues with them switching between species. However, some people have said lateralis have a "taste" to them that leopard geckos may not like(I've never experienced this, but I've heard it from others) so if you have picky geckos you may want to do a test run first.

A couple of tips:
Oranges. These roaches do great as breeders, but I've noticed orange slices increased production a lot.
Have a handling plan. I use a "size sifter"(bucket with holes) to seperate out larger roaches for feeding. These guys cant climb smooth surfaces, but they are CRAZY fast moving, so generally its easier to sift with some sort of device. I also will sometimes stick them in the fridge for 20 min or so to slow them down and make them easier to handle.
It's all about the heat. I keep them in the 90s on the warm side of the bin and it definately improves growth/reproduction.

I think lateralis is a somewhat underrated roach, personally. The activity level has really proved useful for getting reluctant eaters to start. And they don't dig like dubia, so they won't bury themselves and hide.

Good luck!

 

[#19wingnut]

Personally I would first attempt to figure out why your Dubia colony died off before buying any more roaches of any type. Though Dubia do not breed as fast as the Lateralis, they are still a roach and therefore quite prolific, so I would assume that one or more of their husbandry requirements was not being met(though disease or some other variable could be possible). I say this as I understand that care requirements are nearly identical for both types(difference being that Lateralis require higher humidity) and it would be a real let down for you to invest more time and money in to starting a new colony only to have the same end result. Unless i maybe misunderstood your post and the number of Dubia you had in your colony was unable to breed fast enough to keep up with your feeding demands? Anyway best of luck with your new colony whenever you decide to try and get it going again. Oh BTW, I second the above suggestion to feed your roaches oranges(I hear grapefruit is awesome too), my B. Dubia colony seems to enjoy orange more than any other fruit I've thrown in their bin.

 

[Neill]

I use dubia roaches for baby feeding only. Think in the 8 or so months iv had them 3 adult deaths one from drowning and 2 just old age i guess. Noticed my males are getting tattered wings, feel it may be from New England being so dry in winter (Mass). Other then that my colony is going well. Kinda nervous now that they may all start dieing off. They are a super slow start but now I can find a gecko or 2 BESIDES babies. How where you keeping your roaches?

 

[Vegas_Eric]

I feed mine both dubia and lobster roaches. I really like the lobster roaches. They are larger then Blatta Latteralis and very prolific breeders. To keep them from climbing the sides of your tubs, dust them really good with repashy calcium before you drop them in to be eaten. My leo's love them.

 

[Digby Rigby]

As a previous poster mentioned find out why the dubia died. Blatta lateralis are excellent feeders. They breed readily and are about the most prolific easily obtainable roach species available as feeders. Feed them carrots and banana and oranges and some Game bird layena. They do not climb smooth surfaces, nor dig or burrow. Far superior to lobster roaches and the size difference is more than compensated by the rate of breeding. We have a saying. Friends dont let friends get lobster roaches. If humidity is an issue you can also remove the egg cases and place them in containers to hatch where humidity is more easily controlled.

Digby Rigby [email protected]

 

[geckobeginner22]

Hey all.. how much more faster is this roach than a dubia?... I was getting of getting dubias to try out because I heard. They are really good and don't move that fast... because if it moves too fast my gecko just gives up...lol

 

[goReptiles]

A lot of factors contributed to the dubia and discoid roach colony. the discoid colony was not large enough and I kept feeding off the adults to the bearded dragons I had, so they weren't producing what I needed. The dubia was about the same thing; I had more of the, but the faster they produced nymphs, the faster I was needing them, as it was at the height of my leopard gecko hatchlings. It got to the point where few were growing up to breed.

I wouldn't mind having the dubia again, but it was so expensive to buy what I had. The lateralis are just much cheaper to start up a colony. I may buy a few to see if they like them. If so, then I'll be able to start off with more since they're cheaper which will hopefully make for a better breeding colony.

Did you buy the sifter or make it? If you bought it, where did you purchase it?

 

[T-ReXx]

I made it. I just bought a couple of plastic buckets and drilled appropriately sized holes in the bottom.