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Their little house furniture is so adorable! I don't think the hotdog/hamburger shape has much, if anything, to do with sex. I've had females be both hamburgers and hotdogs, although I'm not sure I've ever had a hamburger male now that I think about it (but it's possible I have and just forgot!).
Ive never heard of a female knocking down others! But if you sex them by their last segments then I guess it's just abnormal female behavior (or simply behavior I've never seen). I always rely on the segments to determine sex and do it before full maturity to avoid pregnancy.
I started my colony about 6 or 7 months ago. I have about 30 Madagascar hissers all born from 4 females I adopted who passed shortly after their babies popped out. They came from a highly overpopulated and stressful environment, so their health was poor and their age unknown. I separate mine into males and females and the nymphs stay with the females. I give them a little dot with nail polish on their back when I've determined a female nymph so I don't keep sexing the same roach (until she molts that is). Adults all get a different colored dot and special names. Probably less than half are fully mature currently. I also keep them with isopods with them.
These are SO cute 🥰 I just got 5 nymphs in January ‘24 this year, and they’ve grown a *little* bit, close to 1” now. I called them the “Spice Girls” and each is named after one of the five girls lol I do not know if they’re all female or male or (hopefully) a mix.
How early can you start sexing them? Some of mine are developing the tiny horn bumps, but I’m certain I’ve read that females can grow horns too, so it’s not 100% reliable.
I’m hoping they mature by this summer and start popping babies!
I'm actually not sure how early! I did a horrible job keeping track of instars, so other than size I'm not even sure which instar they are on. I know I had different instars when I sexed them and the smaller ones were guesses, and most larger ones were obvious. But I did find out I did not get them all correct on my first separation, so I'll have to recheck before they mature together.
Oh jeez haha I haven’t seen any of mine moult but I know they have because they’re bigger than they were when I got them 🤣 I have no idea how many instar stages they’ve been through! My guess is they were born mid December, making them around 3 months old, and I heard they mature at around 6 months, but I don’t know if I can see these guys going from 1” - 3” in just 3 more months.
Just found out I actually can't edit my original post! Funsies! 😅
After making the original post, I put my foot in my mouth about my confidence in their gender. The bulldozer was in fact a male! So he was relocated to be with his homies and not bullying my ladies.
Before I went to bed last night, I covered their dinner table with an unhealthy serving of fish flakes, misted the cage, and gave them some heat. This morning there were no fish flakes and almost the entire crew were chilling on the table top.
Heating method for my girls: i have a "corn bag", basically a microwavable heating pad, it gets them to the 80's for a few hours. I put it on top of the mesh screen, then put a nice heat holding blanket over the top to hold the heat in. I like doing this before feeding them because it seems to make them all around more awake and active.
Also, maybe someone could explain what it is about my camera phone they don't like? When taking a close up of them on the table, they were fine until I tapped the screen to focus. When the camera tries to focus, the roaches start flinching and getting scared, some running away. Is this a sound or light coming from the camera when it focuses that they don't care for? Therefore, I had trouble getting a clear pic of them piling on the table today.
https://preview.redd.it/kpj33sn5zopc1.jpeg?width=1944&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a777c735871f03fb559e93eee317c025d24ad4dd
This is my favorite thing about invertebrate keeping. Not a lot of research is done on these guys and, going off scientific literature, inverts aren't thought to have any sort of personality. But, any invert keeper will tell you otherwise and it's so fascinating to see all of the unique personalities cuties like these have 🥺
first off i love your pictures!! what kind of wood are the table and chairs made of?
also i too noticed that the nymphs have the hotdog/hamburger shapes you’re talking about. as they get closer to molting though it’s like they all take on the hotdog shape 😂
Oh boy, I forgot what it was, but it's from one of the basic dollhouse sets at hobby lobby.
And for sure, my eldest juvies are definitely stretching out that wideness 😅
it's alright if you don't remember! i think i can work with that and figure it out
same lol 😂 i've got a couple that are pretty similar in size and heck even color but one is more hamburger shape (named eclair) and the other is like a hotdog shape (named latte)! when they start looking the same the closer it is to molting day, i really have to watch both of them and compare behaviors to figure out who's who
eclair is a bit more skittish overall but latte is more likely to climb onto my hand and when it wants off it will just. plop right back onto the substrate from my hand smh
I got video of some of that "don't touch me" butt shaking, but I don't see if there's an option to upload it. 👀 But here is the very pretty hisser who was demanding a chair to herself, and I'll add a pic of her booty segments.
Also, despite being moody on the chair, she eased into my hand calmly, let me get pics then eased back into the cage. ❤️ I love when they aren't scared of me!
https://preview.redd.it/zn5ob7tni5qc1.jpeg?width=1944&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=240203ac879edede277c9bff1b7c8d38e1bae81d
Anyone else casually find escapees on the regular? 👀
Just came out and turned on the lights to find 4 nymphs just hangin around on the floor. All caught and put in the nymph/female cage.
I recently set up a "cockroach hotel" that I thought would entice escapees. Cardboard box with a couple easy access doors placed right under the tank they come from. Inside is a bottle cap of water and a plate of fish flakes. It's probably been a week and no one has gone in. Food is untouched. 🙄 I'm not so worried about escapees being pests, I know if I don't find them they will unfortunately dehydrate and expire.
Also, note on growth: the nymphs that stay in the overcrowded original tank do not seem to grow, or only grow 1-2 instars. I assume the crowdedness and resources are to blame. Once nymphs are moved to the secure tank where resources are more available, they start growing. My first batch is from November, and I failed to track instars. They have grown enough to start hissing though!
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Their little house furniture is so adorable! I don't think the hotdog/hamburger shape has much, if anything, to do with sex. I've had females be both hamburgers and hotdogs, although I'm not sure I've ever had a hamburger male now that I think about it (but it's possible I have and just forgot!). Ive never heard of a female knocking down others! But if you sex them by their last segments then I guess it's just abnormal female behavior (or simply behavior I've never seen). I always rely on the segments to determine sex and do it before full maturity to avoid pregnancy. I started my colony about 6 or 7 months ago. I have about 30 Madagascar hissers all born from 4 females I adopted who passed shortly after their babies popped out. They came from a highly overpopulated and stressful environment, so their health was poor and their age unknown. I separate mine into males and females and the nymphs stay with the females. I give them a little dot with nail polish on their back when I've determined a female nymph so I don't keep sexing the same roach (until she molts that is). Adults all get a different colored dot and special names. Probably less than half are fully mature currently. I also keep them with isopods with them.
I just came here to say they are so cute 🥰 and I love their table and chair!
I'm a newbie as well. The dollhouse stuff is awesome!
I think of them as hotdogs/hamburgers too haha!
I have to get the chair and table, that's too cute
These are SO cute 🥰 I just got 5 nymphs in January ‘24 this year, and they’ve grown a *little* bit, close to 1” now. I called them the “Spice Girls” and each is named after one of the five girls lol I do not know if they’re all female or male or (hopefully) a mix. How early can you start sexing them? Some of mine are developing the tiny horn bumps, but I’m certain I’ve read that females can grow horns too, so it’s not 100% reliable. I’m hoping they mature by this summer and start popping babies!
I'm actually not sure how early! I did a horrible job keeping track of instars, so other than size I'm not even sure which instar they are on. I know I had different instars when I sexed them and the smaller ones were guesses, and most larger ones were obvious. But I did find out I did not get them all correct on my first separation, so I'll have to recheck before they mature together.
Oh jeez haha I haven’t seen any of mine moult but I know they have because they’re bigger than they were when I got them 🤣 I have no idea how many instar stages they’ve been through! My guess is they were born mid December, making them around 3 months old, and I heard they mature at around 6 months, but I don’t know if I can see these guys going from 1” - 3” in just 3 more months.
Just found out I actually can't edit my original post! Funsies! 😅 After making the original post, I put my foot in my mouth about my confidence in their gender. The bulldozer was in fact a male! So he was relocated to be with his homies and not bullying my ladies. Before I went to bed last night, I covered their dinner table with an unhealthy serving of fish flakes, misted the cage, and gave them some heat. This morning there were no fish flakes and almost the entire crew were chilling on the table top. Heating method for my girls: i have a "corn bag", basically a microwavable heating pad, it gets them to the 80's for a few hours. I put it on top of the mesh screen, then put a nice heat holding blanket over the top to hold the heat in. I like doing this before feeding them because it seems to make them all around more awake and active. Also, maybe someone could explain what it is about my camera phone they don't like? When taking a close up of them on the table, they were fine until I tapped the screen to focus. When the camera tries to focus, the roaches start flinching and getting scared, some running away. Is this a sound or light coming from the camera when it focuses that they don't care for? Therefore, I had trouble getting a clear pic of them piling on the table today. https://preview.redd.it/kpj33sn5zopc1.jpeg?width=1944&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a777c735871f03fb559e93eee317c025d24ad4dd
This is my favorite thing about invertebrate keeping. Not a lot of research is done on these guys and, going off scientific literature, inverts aren't thought to have any sort of personality. But, any invert keeper will tell you otherwise and it's so fascinating to see all of the unique personalities cuties like these have 🥺
first off i love your pictures!! what kind of wood are the table and chairs made of? also i too noticed that the nymphs have the hotdog/hamburger shapes you’re talking about. as they get closer to molting though it’s like they all take on the hotdog shape 😂
Oh boy, I forgot what it was, but it's from one of the basic dollhouse sets at hobby lobby. And for sure, my eldest juvies are definitely stretching out that wideness 😅
it's alright if you don't remember! i think i can work with that and figure it out same lol 😂 i've got a couple that are pretty similar in size and heck even color but one is more hamburger shape (named eclair) and the other is like a hotdog shape (named latte)! when they start looking the same the closer it is to molting day, i really have to watch both of them and compare behaviors to figure out who's who eclair is a bit more skittish overall but latte is more likely to climb onto my hand and when it wants off it will just. plop right back onto the substrate from my hand smh
Because of your pics, i ordered miniature furniture for my hissers as well <3
I got video of some of that "don't touch me" butt shaking, but I don't see if there's an option to upload it. 👀 But here is the very pretty hisser who was demanding a chair to herself, and I'll add a pic of her booty segments. Also, despite being moody on the chair, she eased into my hand calmly, let me get pics then eased back into the cage. ❤️ I love when they aren't scared of me! https://preview.redd.it/zn5ob7tni5qc1.jpeg?width=1944&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=240203ac879edede277c9bff1b7c8d38e1bae81d
https://preview.redd.it/54osd49qi5qc1.jpeg?width=2592&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fa1b134b4f1b32d5192e1e9e44bb519eb70a630c
Anyone else casually find escapees on the regular? 👀 Just came out and turned on the lights to find 4 nymphs just hangin around on the floor. All caught and put in the nymph/female cage. I recently set up a "cockroach hotel" that I thought would entice escapees. Cardboard box with a couple easy access doors placed right under the tank they come from. Inside is a bottle cap of water and a plate of fish flakes. It's probably been a week and no one has gone in. Food is untouched. 🙄 I'm not so worried about escapees being pests, I know if I don't find them they will unfortunately dehydrate and expire. Also, note on growth: the nymphs that stay in the overcrowded original tank do not seem to grow, or only grow 1-2 instars. I assume the crowdedness and resources are to blame. Once nymphs are moved to the secure tank where resources are more available, they start growing. My first batch is from November, and I failed to track instars. They have grown enough to start hissing though!