How to Raise Cherry Cockroaches? A Detailed Guide to Keeping Them
The cherry red cockroach, also known as the East Turkestan cockroach, gets its name because its body color resembles ripe cherry red. In some regions it is specially made into a local specialty snack to eat, so how do you raise cherry cockroaches?
1. Keeping tools
Buy a rearing box, prepare some egg trays, fold both sides of the egg trays equally, and stack them in an orderly way in the rearing box. Note here that the rearing box does not need a lid, as they will not run out. If you think they will run out, then put on the lid and punch holes in the rearing box and the lid.
2. Keeping temperature and humidity
(1) Temperature: the keeping temperature is best at 15-32 degrees, but if the temperature is raised to 29-30 degrees, the cockroaches will be more active and reproduce faster.
(2) Humidity: try to keep humidity between 50% and 80%. Too high humidity easily causes mold and disease, while too low humidity is unfavorable for molting and growth. Generally speaking, southern regions do not need to consider humidity, but northern regions are relatively dry and need appropriately increased humidity in the rearing box.
3. Lighting requirements
Cherry cockroaches like dark environments, so the light should not be too bright.
4. Food requirements
Cherry cockroaches have omnivorous feeding habits. You can feed them some cat food, dog food, bran, cornmeal, bread, fish feed, etc. Each week, feed them some carrots, apples, cucumbers, oranges, pears, cantaloupe, bananas, and so on. Generally, about 2-3 days' worth of dry feed is enough. As for foods with higher moisture such as cucumbers and apples, the amount should be controlled to what can be finished the next day to avoid spoilage. The best time to feed is in the evening.
5. Keep the environment in the box clean
Cherry cockroaches excrete a lot, so clean out the droppings regularly every week to avoid mold and the production of pathogens.
6. Breeding cycle
They mature after 3-5 months of growth, have a lifespan of about 2~3 years, give birth to 20~30 baby cockroaches per litter, and give birth once every 1~2 months.
7. Keep high-quality female breeders
First, do not buy culled female breeders, because culled female breeders are those nearing the end of their lives, since cockroaches do not live long. Second, do not buy all males or all females. If you want them to quickly reproduce baby cockroaches, I suggest buying subadults or a breeding group. The disadvantage of a breeding group is that it is relatively expensive.