dubia turning cannibalistic...

[momohobobobo]

So the adult males in my colony recently all mysteriously died within about a month. I mean hundreds within a few weeks. They all would turn up dried up in the corner of the bin. I always have food and water available and i mist them daily since there is no natural humidity where i live. I have had them for well over a year with no problems until now. Since all my males decided to die i recently ordered 40 more to keep my colony functional. Its been 3 days and since then i have found the new males in the bin nearly completely eaten each day. All that is ever left is the wings and parts of the legs and sometimes the head (sometimes its only the wings).
I noticed weird behavior immediately as i put the new males in. After i added the new males and was messing with the food and crates i saw a male literally being attacked by 3 nymphs. 2 were about 1 inch and the third was about 1/3". They were all trying to get underneath the males wings. They would push themselves so far into the males wings that they would flare out. I pushed them all away and examined the male. I thought that maybe he might have a particular food under his wings that they couldn't resist. Thought that maybe during travel they were shook and got particles of food under there i guess. I didn't find anything unusual however. I haven't actually seen it happen again but i still find at least one eaten every day. I also found a female today with her body hollowed out and no head.
Just to clarify i do constantly have food and water crystals available and their humidity should not be an issue. The only thing in their routine that has changed is i have started to add a little bee pollen to their food. I started adding it about a month ago but the cannibalism issue has only been noticed since the males were added.
Hopefully someone has had a similar experience or some advice. If not it can still be an interesting topic. Thanks for any help and sorry for the length

 

[Gail]

What are you feeding? The most common reason for cannibalism is lack of protein.

 

[momohobobobo]

They have plenty of protein, i have always made sure. This is the blend of food i came up with: The majority is high protein puppy food lets say about 50%, then 20% dry plain oatmeal, 10% tropical fish flakes (no artificial color and extremely high in protein), then the left over 20% or so is bee pollen for a little extra protein, but mostly for all the nutrients that can be hard to get in otherwise. All this is turned to powder in a coffee grinder before feeding. I've had that "recipe" since i've had my roaches with no problems :?

 

[momohobobobo]

and also i do regularly include fruits and veggies

 

[TASTIGER]

are you sure you arent seeing the skin that they shed? and the nymphs will gather around the adults for warmth

 

[momohobobobo]

Hahaha I'm positive their bodies are gone except for a few legs and wings usually. Sometimes they are only partially eaten and I can see their insides

 

[TASTIGER]

thats strange! expecially if you are providing enough protein

 

[momohobobobo]

Exactly. I mean they like ambushed that first male. I even thought maybe I got the wrong kind of roach on accident and they didn't like eachother. I'm kind of out of ideas

 

[MrWhite]

Hahaha I'm positive their bodies are gone except for a few legs and wings usually. Sometimes they are only partially eaten and I can see their insides

I'm thinking this might be the start of the ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE, :shock: :help: I didn't realize it was going to start with roaches first!!!

I think it's time to dig out the "Zombie Apocalypse for Dummies" book :book:

 

[Beardednoob]

Insects will eat their own if they die. They will also turn cannibalistic if they lack proteins or hydration. This can be seen in crickets and superworms for 2 regularly seen feeders.

 

[TASTIGER]

Hahaha I'm positive their bodies are gone except for a few legs and wings usually. Sometimes they are only partially eaten and I can see their insides

I'm thinking this might be the start of the ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE, :shock: :help: I didn't realize it was going to start with roaches first!!!

I think it's time to dig out the "Zombie Apocalypse for Dummies" book :book:

oh no :shock: time to go raid costco.

They have plenty of protein, i have always made sure. This is the blend of food i came up with: The majority is high protein puppy food lets say about 50%, then 20% dry plain oatmeal, 10% tropical fish flakes (no artificial color and extremely high in protein), then the left over 20% or so is bee pollen for a little extra protein, but mostly for all the nutrients that can be hard to get in otherwise. All this is turned to powder in a coffee grinder before feeding. I've had that "recipe" since i've had my roaches with no problems :?

so its not a lack of protien. try adding a little bit of orange juice to the ground up mixture just enough to keep it together any more and it will mold

 

[momohobobobo]

I try to add oranges as much as possible. I also use grapefruit. I squirt the extra juice on their water crystals and free them the actual fruit

 

[TASTIGER]

that is so weird..

 

[wes]

I noticed weird behavior immediately as i put the new males in. After i added the new males and was messing with the food and crates i saw a male literally being attacked by 3 nymphs. 2 were about 1 inch and the third was about 1/3". They were all trying to get underneath the males wings. They would push themselves so far into the males wings that they would flare out. I pushed them all away and examined the male. I thought that maybe he might have a particular food under his wings that they couldn't resist. Thought that maybe during travel they were shook and got particles of food under there i guess. I didn't find anything unusual however. I haven't actually seen it happen again but i still find at least one eaten every day. I also found a female today with her body hollowed out and no head.

It is not lodged food they are after, but a pheromone that the males secrete to attract females. The gland is by the base of the wings. I have seen rival males attack males who were trying to entice a female by going after the pheromone, and maybe a nymph do the same, but I don't think I've seen three at once and I've only seen it while the male had his wings up, trying to attract a female. I suspect once new territories are established, things will calm down, but I'm not sure. Definitely an interesting topic.

I would be concerned why the original males suddenly died. It seems like a lot in a short period of time. I hope the housing was replaced or thoroughly cleaned and sterilized -- just in case there was something (I don't know what) in there.

As for a diet, try adding carrots, any kind of squash and lettuce. For some reason, they are finding the adults more appealing than the food, which is not right. (And it could be that the adults are already dead, maybe from stress of being assaulted.)

 

[momohobobobo]

Just to show what im dealing with. Its body is gone and parts of legs missing