Adult Male Dubia Roaches

Description

Though the reproductive role of male Dubia roaches makes them arguably more expendable than females, we don’t treat the two differently. Our males get the same food, environment, and care as our females. This means they eat only the most nutritious foods and live in conditions that meet and exceed their needs. We know that food, temperature, and other environmental factors play a role in determining the lifetime mating success of male Dubia roaches. Our males will bring the benefit of exceptionally healthy and well cared for male breeders to your colony.

As feeders, male Dubia tend to be more active than females. They’re faster, and they tend to run around an enclosure where females prefer to seek shelter an hunker down. Male Dubia roaches are a great choice if your animal likes a challenge from their feeder insects.

And of course, both males and females are fantastically nutritious. We suspect there is probably at least some difference between the two, and that difference is likely their fat content. Female Dubia eat their entire lives to build up their fat body – an organ similar to the liver important for egg production and other reproductive processes. Males have different nutritional needs and dietary habits, partly because they don’t have a fat body. For example, they tend to prefer fruit versus more calorie dense foods. There’s no research on the topic, but male Dubia are probably lower in fat than females.

Important Note on Housing Male Dubia

NOTE: We recommend a female:male breeding colony ratio between 3:1 and 7:1. Keep male feeders separate from a breeding colony if including them would bring the F:M ratio above this range. Too many males in crowded conditions can cause the colony stress. On the other hand, fewer males are never a problem.