Dubia invaders
- Thread starter Sharon12
- Start date
NashansCamos
Chameleon Enthusiast
That, my friend, is free clean up crew
nightanole
Chameleon Enthusiast
I could use some, they want a buck a worm some places... 10 worms to start your deer collection they say.
DocZ
Chameleon Enthusiast
@jamest0o0 is there anything you use or recommend for clean up crews in roach colonies?
Sharon12
Established Member
Mine girl grew into them and i am now free of crickets!
Only if you allow them to get a large numbers and no other food. I would not have a colony with out them and I would never get rid of them. They eat the dead roaches which reduces moisture which causes colony collapse. If they get too hungry they will eat the same food as the roaches. They are not inclined to eat anything alive unless starving. Every major roach colony website will tell you to leave them in.
edit
https://dubiaroachdepot.com/guidance/dermestid-beetle-cleaners-help-deciding
MissSkittles
Chameleon Enthusiast
@DocZ The baby roaches are said to eat the frass, but in my bin it seemed that they weren’t doing a very good job of it so I made my roach colony bioactive. I use dwarf white isopods and regular springtails. Of course I had to add a soil mix of coco coir and a handful of organic soil with some leaf matter and cork bark. It’s a total pain in the butt to remove the babies, but my colony seems to have become much more productive of them.
Sharon12
Established Member
Super helpful article. I also now think I was cleaning too frequently...learned about frasse.
nightanole
Chameleon Enthusiast
It was at this point i thought your colony had allergies and you needed to wear gloves, like dealing with silkies...
jamest0o0
Chameleon Enthusiast
I've worked with over 50 species of roaches, several beetles, etc. Numerous bioactive enclosures as well. Even darkling/buffalo beetles will attack roaches in large enough numbers with food present(witnessed it several times in a few bins where I let them get out of control). Dermestid can fly as others have mentioned. If they work for your situation that's great, but I have a room full of bins, and allowing dermestid to get into some of my bins with more sensitive species would be devastating. It is rare and with dubia I wouldn't worry about them eating all of the nymphs, but other species can die even from out competition over food.
I also would not want them to make it to my bioactive enclosures. I just don't trust them. Maybe I'm paranoid.
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jamest0o0
Chameleon Enthusiast
This should be common knowledge by now, totally agree.
jamest0o0
Chameleon Enthusiast
As @MissSkittles mentioned, the best way seems to be a bioactive enclosure for roaches that can handle a little bit of moisture(most can, some do better in dry). The frass becomes part of the substrate, even in non bio enclosures. Most roaches will eat their dead. For moldy food I like having springtails and isopods. Giant canyon isopods are probably the best cleaner for bins in place of beetles IME. I don't use them with more shy species just because theyll crowd the food. In cases like this smaller springtails and slower isopods like zebras do well. Overall, it depends on the species of roach regarding what to go with. Some will do fine with beetles. Others do better with nothing, but some bioactive substrate. For these I turn the soil over on any old food and it naturally breaks down very fast.
Reptofreak
Chameleon Enthusiast
Your paranoid bro, I have them in every bin yes the beetles fly and end up in my bioactive enclosure but they don’t last long. The only negative thing I have noticed is that they will eat freshly hatched crickets.
