Another dubia question

[spodermin]

If you feed a T a mature female, isnt it largely possible to end up with an enclosure full of babies? How does one avoid this?

 

[Beowulf68]

Dubia do not lay eggs, but give birth to live young. Once the T has the roach, it's a done deal.

 

[Tnoob]

Dubia do not lay eggs, but give birth to live young. Once the T has the roach, it's a done deal.

Aaactualy they are avivapoidal I think is the word. They are half living ovoids.

 

[Mr. P]

“ovo-viviparous”, meaning that the egg sac is stored in the female's body. When the eggs hatch, they exit the female's body.

 

[ilovebrachys]

If you feed a T a mature female, isnt it largely possible to end up with an enclosure full of babies? How does one avoid this?

don't feed mature females if you are worried -that's the best way to avoid it

 

[Tnoob]

“ovo-viviparous”, meaning that the egg sac is stored in the female's body. When the eggs hatch, they exit the female's body.

Yeah, that.

 

[Tortoise Tom]

If you feed a T a mature female, isnt it largely possible to end up with an enclosure full of babies? How does one avoid this?

My tarantulas grab their feeders instantly. If they don't take it after a few seconds, I carefully prod the roach and make it run over near the spider. If the spider refuses to take it, I remove the roach.

If the roach did have babies before being eaten, the spider would eventually eat all of those too. Further, the roach babies wouldn't likely do very well at the room temperatures that most tarantulas are kept in. Dubias need it in the 80s to survive and grow.

 

[Tnoob]

My tarantulas grab their feeders instantly. If they don't take it after a few seconds, I carefully prod the roach and make it run over near the spider. If the spider refuses to take it, I remove the roach.

If the roach did have babies before being eaten, the spider would eventually eat all of those too. Further, the roach babies wouldn't likely do very well at the room temperatures that most tarantulas are kept in. Dubias need it in the 80s to survive and grow.

It may be important to not that Dubia do burrow, so I like the lay them on their backs on the "welcome mat". Their broad size makes it hard for them to right themselves. It's funny to watch them struggle, especially if you're a bit sadistic like yours truly. Dubia need to have a constant 85 degrees Fahrenheit to breed. From what I know that's mandatory.

 

[Tortoise Tom]

It may be important to not that Dubia do burrow, so I like the lay them on their backs on the "welcome mat". Their broad size makes it hard for them to right themselves. It's funny to watch them struggle, especially if you're a bit sadistic like yours truly. Dubia need to have a constant 85 degrees Fahrenheit to breed. From what I know that's mandatory.

It doesn't need to be a constant 85, but production and growth drops of quickly the more time temps dip into the 70s for this species of roach. My reptile room is heated to 80. The dubia colonies are up high on a shelf in the room. On a cold winter night, the temp might drop into the high 70s, but the heat lamps during the day will bring it back up to the mid to high 80s high up in the room where they are. They still make babies all winter long at those temps.

 

[Tnoob]

It doesn't need to be a constant 85, but production and growth drops of quickly the more time temps dip into the 70s for this species of roach. My reptile room is heated to 80. The dubia colonies are up high on a shelf in the room. On a cold winter night, the temp might drop into the high 70s, but the heat lamps during the day will bring it back up to the mid to high 80s high up in the room where they are. They still make babies all winter long at those temps.

No kidding? That's good to know because I plan on making a colony this weekend.

 

[spodermin]

I'm worried about mature male population in the colony if I'm exclusively using them. I'm aware they give live birth but what Im saying is, lets say an almost ready female gets grabbed by a T (my stirmis are good eaters so it surviving in there isnt the concern) couldnt the babies then come out after? Either right away or slightly post mortem

Is there a way to tell pregnant mature females from non pregnant ones?

 

[Tortoise Tom]

I'm worried about mature male population in the colony if I'm exclusively using them. I'm aware they give live birth but what Im saying is, lets say an almost ready female gets grabbed by a T (my stirmis are good eaters so it surviving in there isnt the concern) couldnt the babies then come out after? Either right away or slightly post mortem

Is there a way to tell pregnant mature females from non pregnant ones?

Once the tarantula has a hold of it, the babies will be churned up and eaten along with the rest of the meal. I suppose it is physically possible for one to drop away and escape, but very unlikely. Even if it did, the tarantula would eventually find it and eat it. Even if the tarantula didn't find it and eat it, no harm is done. The baby roach can't escape, and it won't harm your tarantula even during the molt.

The egg case is retained inside the female until the moment the babies come out. The chances of the babies coming out at the exact moment you grab that female dubia and toss it to your stirmi are slim to none. You'd see it if the babies were already coming out.

I've been feeding roaches of many species including dubia, hissers, and many Blaberus species, to insectivores since the 90's. I've never had what you are worried about here happen.

 

[spodermin]

Once the tarantula has a hold of it, the babies will be churned up and eaten along with the rest of the meal. I suppose it is physically possible for one to drop away and escape, but very unlikely. Even if it did, the tarantula would eventually find it and eat it. Even if the tarantula didn't find it and eat it, no harm is done. The baby roach can't escape, and it won't harm your tarantula even during the molt.

The egg case is retained inside the female until the moment the babies come out. The chances of the babies coming out at the exact moment you grab that female dubia and toss it to your stirmi are slim to none. You'd see it if the babies were already coming out.

I've been feeding roaches of many species including dubia, hissers, and many Blaberus species, to insectivores since the 90's. I've never had what you are worried about here happen.

Good enough for me. Thanks man

 

[Tortoise Tom]

Good enough for me. Thanks man

Just thinking back... There were many times when a large pregnant female roach near term was fed to a large lizard. When the lizard bites down, "stuff" often shoots out the back end of the roach. Never had any live babies scurry away.

 

[MassExodus]

My tarantulas grab their feeders instantly. If they don't take it after a few seconds, I carefully prod the roach and make it run over near the spider. If the spider refuses to take it, I remove the roach.

If the roach did have babies before being eaten, the spider would eventually eat all of those too. Further, the roach babies wouldn't likely do very well at the room temperatures that most tarantulas are kept in. Dubias need it in the 80s to survive and grow.

Negative, ghost rider. Ive had thriving colonies at 73 degrees, babies everywhere. Higher heat helps, I'm sure, but they do just fine at room temp. So do hissers and lats.

 

[spodermin]

Negative, ghost rider. Ive had thriving colonies at 73 degrees, babies everywhere. Higher heat helps, I'm sure, but they do just fine at room temp. So do hissers and lats.

Agreed

 

[Tortoise Tom]

Negative, ghost rider. Ive had thriving colonies at 73 degrees, babies everywhere. Higher heat helps, I'm sure, but they do just fine at room temp. So do hissers and lats.

Hissers and lats will survive and reproduce outside anywhere in the southern US. I heard of a grad student who literally froze hissers for 20 days and then defrosted them and they went back to normal life.

This hasn't been my experience with dubia. Adults survive just fine in the 70s, but everything slows way down.

In any case, babies in the OPs stirmi enclosure are not going to be a problem.

 

[Tnoob]

I'm worried about mature male population in the colony if I'm exclusively using them. I'm aware they give live birth but what Im saying is, lets say an almost ready female gets grabbed by a T (my stirmis are good eaters so it surviving in there isnt the concern) couldnt the babies then come out after? Either right away or slightly post mortem

Is there a way to tell pregnant mature females from non pregnant ones?

I've noticed a few of my females are very large in the butt. So, maybe?