Dubia Roaches Dying

[Darkbl2w]

I have been keeping about 300 medium dubias over the last week as feeders for my beardie. But for some reason everyday as I pull some out to feed my beardie I notice a few dead on their backs. I have the dubias set up in a 20 gallon which I keep in a closet and I make sure they have food and water crystals daily. I’m losing about 3-5 dubias a day. What am I doing wrong?

 

[Claudiusx]

Can you post a picture of your setup?

Could be many reasons.

What are they eating?
What is the temperature at the bottom of the tank? The ambient air temp?
Is there enough ventilation?

Its typically gonna come back to temperatures and diet.

-Brandon

 

[Darkbl2w]

Can you post a picture of your setup?

Could be many reasons.

What are they eating?
What is the temperature at the bottom of the tank? The ambient air temp?
Is there enough ventilation?

Its typically gonna come back to temperatures and diet.

-Brandon

Yes I can post a pic later when I get home. I have them eating beardie pellets and Flukers cricket feed with calcium. I do not know the floor temp and ambient air temp because I haven’t been monitoring those I thought they could live at room temperature. As for ventilation the tank has a mesh screen top, but I normally keep the closet door closed so maybe that’s the issue.

 

[Claudiusx]

If they are at room temp that's most likely why they are dying. They are tropical roaches they need to be kept around 85-95 ideally, but will tolerate the low 80s.

In large quantities, they can produce enough body heat to keep eachother warm, but 300 in a 20g wont do that. You will want to get a heat source. I prefer a heat mat under the tank.

-Brandon

 

[Darkbl2w]

If they are at room temp that's most likely why they are dying. They are tropical roaches they need to be kept around 85-95 ideally, but will tolerate the low 80s.

In large quantities, they can produce enough body heat to keep eachother warm, but 300 in a 20g wont do that. You will want to get a heat source. I prefer a heat mat under the tank.

-Brandon

Ahh ok, I actually had a heat pad under the tank to begin with but I read that it was only required when breeding so I took it off. I’ll slap it back under the tank later, hopefully they’ll stop dying. Thanks for the advice!

 

[Draven88]

I do agree with the previous advice of higher heat, always best too keep them in a more natural environment to their home. But on top of that I would strongly advise to stop the cricket feed with calcium. While this would be great to pass that calcium on to your beardie it is generally not good for a exoskeleton insect like dubia. The do shed that exoskeleton when growing and produce a new one (leaving an nearly completely white dubia in the process. I had the same idea of the calcium to be passed on a whole back and noticed a huge spike in die off in my colony which stopped when I stopped that food. In a little research I fund that it is believed that with too much calcium the exoskeleton becomes abnormally stronger/thicker and they cant shed it and end up dying because they are squished in their own shell so to speak with compressed organs.

I will note none of this was a true scientific study with control groups and such but it matched up to my experience so exactly I tend to agree with it. In the end buying some dubia chow or making your own would be better. And for water crystals they are great, but same thing no calcium added ones.