Nocticola sp. "Malaysia"

This caresheet may or may not be applicable to other species of Nocticola. Some species are true troglophiles that may not handle as warm temps as these sp. "Malaysia" though.

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Housing:

Since this is the smallest roach species in the hobby right now, I'd recommend starting cultures off in a small deli cup so they can easily locate food. Something about 24 oz or so would more than spacious enough for a starter culture, with a gallon container being big enough to house many hundreds of Nocticola. This species likes having lots of surface area and hides, particularly hides that go into the substrate, like tunnels and such, (which makes sense since Nocticola like these are often found inside termite and ant nests). So having a super chunky substrate, especially one with moss, curved bark and corkboard hides partially buried in it works great for this species.

I personally use a base substrate of coconut fiber a cm deep at the bottom of their enclosure, with small pieces of bark, cardboard, eggcrate, corkboard, and long fibered sphagnum moss on top of that, topped with another cm of coco fiber, but leaving some patches of the hides still exposed so they can get down there. There are even more corkboard hides and sphagnum moss on top for them to hide in, as well as a couple small chunks of rotten wood. This sorta simulates the kinds of tunnels and invert burrows they'd be hiding inside in their native habitat. However they aren't super picky, and some people just use coco fiber and coco chunks as their base substrate, with lots of bark and leaf litter on top, which seems to work just as well. As long as they have lots of dark nooks and crannies to get into, they'll be fine.

This species needs high humidity, and does well with minimal to moderate ventilation levels. No life stages can climb smooth surfaces, but they can easily scale dirt and dried water stains that accumulate on the sides of enclosures, so a tight fitting lid with micro mesh or pinhole ventilation is recommended.

Diet:

Dog/cat/fish food or some alternative works as the staple diet. Fruits and veggies are nibbled on as well, though not as much in my experience as the protein based foods.
Some have said that this species requires rotten wood in their diet to do well, but this is false, as me and one of my friends have confirmed that they breed just fine without any rotten wood available to them whatsoever.

Temperature:

Temperatures from 74F° to 85F° seem to work well for breeding, but they may breed at even lower temps, and seem to tolerate warmer ones just fine too. The warmer they are, the faster they'll breed.

Breeding/Life Cycle:

Adults seem to live at least several months, sadly I haven't documented exactly how long. Oothecae take around a month to hatch depending on temps, with nymphs maturing in 3-4 months or so. Oddly, all adults I've ever seem to be female, and this strain may actually be parthenogenetic, (I am testing this theory out now, will edit this caresheet if I can confirm parthenogenesis).

I can see certain large, very prolific springtails like Sinella curviseta potentially outcompeting these roaches, as well as other pests. Oribatid mites and small silver springtails, as well as predatory mites seem not to bother this species though, at least not in moderate numbers. This species doesn't create a lot of filth nor do they seem to mind frass buildups, and they seemingly eat their own dead readily. Overcrowding has never been an issue for me either, all in all they seem quite easy and forgiving so long as they are not allowed to dry out.

This species has great potential as a microfeeder, and even possibly as a cleaner crew for other roaches and misc inverts/herps. Overall I consider it a great addition to any roach enthusiast's collection, and they might have great use beyond the scope of Blatticulture alone as well!