creepy momo bugs!

[tzap13]

I am determined to find a method for breeding dubias so I dont have to touch them and they are as self sustaining as possible ( of course i would feed them and use the water gel thingies)

I got so excited when I saw one guy adding "cleaner crews" to his dubia colony, the dermestid beetles that taxidermists use to clean animal skulls.

My questions:

Anyone else do this?

Do they fly? I read that they can rarely but.... If I open a tupperware and a (insert any little critter here) flies at me, I will miss work that day from passing the hell out haha.

Already had the idea I could just get some hamster tubes (capped at the top) and prop them up at an angle along the egg crates in the dubia tupperware and put a small screen on it with a hole only small enough to allow small dubias to craw in. (if I scuffed the insides of the tubes with sandpaper they could crawl inside it i believe)

This way I could dump the tube into a feeder cup and never have to touch the creepy things.

It would be odd to try to explain to my boss that I missed work because a beetle flew at me when I opened up the roach bin to feed my chameleon and I passed out cold like I got punched by mike tyson.

It's funny but roach colonies seem cleaner than these )*&%@#$ superworms I am taking care of for my sister in law

 

[maxttu]

They cannot fly. If you drop a male, he'll flutter his wings. They can't climb, they don't stink and they are very self-sustaining.

Start with 100+ mixed sizes, keep them warn (90+ degrees, dark and fed and you'll have 1000 within months!

 

[tzap13]

not the dubias 8P

Yea, I know the dubias dont fly, I meant the dermestid beetles 8)

 

[tzap13]

funny~

It's funny I was just reading some other posts you made Max

 

[ChamHoudini]

I have the cleaner crew beetles (lil black ones) fly out of my bin. So you would have some explaining to do if it did happen. Also they don't do a super great job cleaning the bin so you would have to clean it still just not as often.

 

[tzap13]

done and done

well, so much for the dermestid then heh. 6 of one, half dozen of the other, that removes the quandry about how to sepearte those from the dubias when I tap the hamster tubes into my feeder cup.

Yea, Ima be the only guy on the planet with a chameleon raising bugs he wont touch.

I'm a bit off, but to voluntarily breed roaches, i think that is a prerequisite.

Time to dig out my respirator from my sheet metal days *snaps on rubber gloves*

Now to find a source for dubias on cham forums 8) WTB starter colony!!

 

[maxttu]

Where are you located? I may be willing to part with my colony on the cheap.

 

[tzap13]

near st louis

about 40 mins from st louis very close to wentzville in a small town called moscow mills. 63362 zip code

 

[Jon114]

Lesser mealworms (which you can get from roachcrossing) do an AMAZING job cleaning roach bins. A small starter culture goes a long way; they breed quite fast. The larvae, which are basically small, plump, and softer mealworms, make as good of a feeder as small dubias.

Unfortunately their numbers can get overhand at such a point you will need to thin out the adults, or else they will start to fly. Unless you keep your bin open you won't have much trouble.

 

[nightanole]

Lesser mealworms (which you can get from roachcrossing) do an AMAZING job cleaning roach bins. A small starter culture goes a long way; they breed quite fast. The larvae, which are basically small, plump, and softer mealworms, make as good of a feeder as small dubias.

Unfortunately their numbers can get overhand at such a point you will need to thin out the adults, or else they will start to fly. Unless you keep your bin open you won't have much trouble.

Thats what i am rocking. Mine came as hitch hikers on a cricket order. I just threw them in the roach bin and they have been working out. They hollow out a husk pretty fast. A little too fast some times, my buddy likes to roast the recently deceased and feed them to his turtles.

 

[tzap13]

Yikes!

Oh man! It's one thing to breed roaches but roasting them that crosses lines! 8P

 

[pssh]

I definitely recommend lesser mealworms more than dermestid. Those stupid dermestid beetles fly out at me and it is awful. I've never had any lesser mealworms fly at me, and they are great feeders for smaller animals and larger animals that will eat smaller foods.