Thursday, June 23, 2022

Eurycotis sp. "Venezuela"

Housing:

Anything half a gallon or larger should work for a starter culture of this small species. I recommend moderate to high airflow, with a quarter to a third of the enclosure kept humid, the rest dry. They appreciate occasional light misting of the dry side of the enclosure, but I don't think it's absolutely necessary. For substrate, coconut fiber, sphagnum peat, potting soil, etc. will work fine, they're not picky. Lots of hides in the form of bark, leaf litter, eggcrate or cardboard rolls are appreciated.

All life stages climb well, so a tight fitting lid and possibly a super slick climbing barrier such as silicone oil are advised (they'll probably climb right over Vaseline, a common trait of this genus). 


Diet:

Dog/cat/fish/chick food, fruits and veggies make a good staple diet.


Temperature:

Temps in the 75-85F° range are optimal for breeding, they may breed slowly at slightly lower temps though.


Breeding/Life Cycle:

Adults live at least 5-6 months, probably a bit longer (still waiting on some of my oldest ones to kick it at the time of writing this... 😅). Females lay quite a few ooths, that they usually bury or adhere to hides. Said ooths only take 2-3 months to hatch under optimal conditions, and the nymphs seem to take about 5-8 months to mature depending on temperature, food availability, etc.. 

They're not as crazy territorial as other Eurycotis spp. are, and seem to do OK in somewhat crowded conditions. Not 100% sure on their filth tolerance, but it may be a good idea to tidy up and replace substrate when it becomes completely covered in frass and/or dead bodies, since some other members of this genus don't like filthy conditions long term.

Like some members of this genus, this species will release a chemical defense fluid when sufficiently disturbed that smells rather sweet, like almonds and/or cherries.
Overall it's a cute little species, that I think deserves a place in any Blatticulturist's collection.

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