Dubia Roach Care Sheet
Distribution:
Argentina, French Guyana, Brazil
Description:
Blaptica dubia a.k.a dubia roaches a.k.a orange spotted roaches are a non climbing non flying roach species they cannot climb plastic or glass. Dubia roaches are sexually dimorphic, that is to say that the adult females look completely different from the adult males. Females do not have wings, but have little tiny wing stubs. Males have wings and can flutter fall to the ground at an angle. The males can also hop a few inches, but cannot really fly.
Size:
1/8th inch when born, females can reach upto 2 5/8 inches males reach 2-2 1/2 inces
Lifespan:
16 - 24 months males live less time then females
Care Difficulty Level:
easy/moderate
Caging:
Dubia cannot climb glass or smooth plastic. I like to house all of my roaches in rubbermaid or sterlite containers with screened lids. I suggest screening 80% of the lid as you can always cover part of it with a terry cloth towel to help retain humidity. Some the opaque sterlites and some of the rubbermaids are textured. It is difficult to see if you are not looking for it. The baby dubia can climb the textured bins, but the larger nymphs and the adults are to heavy too. If you have a problem with them climbing the textured bins, use packing tape as a roach barrier.
Substrate:
I use egg crates positioned vertically for additional floor/living space. A substrate of coconut fiber (eco earth, bed a beast, coconut coir) and sphagnum moss can be used as can other soil mixtures. If you use any kind of substrate from a hardware store or garden shop, MAKE SURE IT IS CHEMICAL FREE!
Required Temperatures:
82-95 degrees
Humidity:
40%-50% You can keep a spray bottle handy to help keep humidity up in drier areas or soak the above mentioned terry cloth towel and place it over some of the screened lid. Wetting down the substrate periodically can help maintain proper humidity as well
Food Requirements:
Like most roaches, dubia are decomposers, feeding on ripe fruit and other plant materials, and probably the occasional animal material in the wild. I keep my home made dry roach food available to them at all times as part of daily care. When feeding any fresh fruits or vegetables, do not put in more then they can eat in 24-36 hour period to avoid problems caused by rotten food. I also provide water gel to my dubia roaches as a water source at all times.
Maintenance:
Keep food and water available at all times and clean out the waste as needed. I do not allow the waste to get any deeper then 1/2-3/4 of an inch. The baby dubia will burrow into the waste and should be removed prior to disposing of the waste. I also leave some in as the baby dubia seem to do better when they can feed on their parents waste.
Breeding Notes:
Dubia can have 25-35 babies per month when kept under proper conditions. Dubia take 5 months or so to reach adulthood and can live for a total of 16-24 months. Females normally live longer then males.