Classification
Order — Blattoptera.
Genus — Eublaberus.
Species — Eublaberus posticus.
Habitat
Orange head roaches are a tropical roach from South America.
Outward appearance
Length: 5 cm.
Both male and female have wings and are a nice rusty orange brown color and nymphs are deep orange red.
Adults are unable to fly.
This is a non-climbing species which means they are unable to climb smooth surfaces.
They are a nocturnal species being more active at night and are very shy and skittish when disturbed.
Adults have a life span of around 1 year.
Feeding
Orange Head cockroaches can be fed a variety of high protein diets including commercial cockroach diets and other high protein canned and dry foods like those designed for monitors, tegus, and bearded dragons . Fresh fruits and vegetables should be offered as well. Do not feed head lettuce, stick with romaine and other leafy greens, as they are more nutritious. Carrots seem to be a universal favorite, but oranges, apple, bananas, tomatoes, celery, squash, peas and pea pods, and others can be fed as well. Remove uneaten food after a few days to avoid spoilage.
Don’t use things like fish flakes or dog food and cat food; it wasn’t designed to end up in your reptiles, and these foods can cause your animal more harm than good in the long run.
Maintenance care
Housing orange heads is very simple. Any container is suitable to use such as but not limited to Rubbermaid containers or glass aquariums. Size does not really matter but will depend on how many roaches you need to keep. I use a 56 quart Rubbermaid for mine. Another thing to keep in mind is to never overcrowd the container. A for sure sign of this would be short or missing antennas. Overcrowding can also slow production and growth because of the competition for food and hiding areas.
Breeding
Adult Cockroaches will breed quickly if provided with the proper conditions. To induce breeding in Orange Head cockroaches, keep the cage between 80 to 90 degrees F day and night. As a general rule breeding will occur with no special effort on the part of the keeper. Eggs are normally laid in an ootheca or egg case. Females carry the ootheca (egg case) internally and incubate the egg case for about 30 days, after which time up 40 young will be born. The parents and offspring will typically remain in close physical contact for extended periods of time. Nymphs, or baby roaches, are about 3/16 of an inch when born, and will reach adult size in 3 to 4 months.
Difficulty keeping
Pheromones can cause an allergy.
