Gromphadorhina portentosa... With Locality Info!?

Nicoluc Shipment Pt 6/6

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That's right, we're finishing this series of posts off with a classic, but with a twist... Everyone's familiar with the classic Madagascar hissing cockroaches, Gromphadorhina portentosa, however none of the old hobby stocks have actual locality data, and most have been hybridized by now with the exception of a few lines. However, in a certain insectarium in Belgium, they apparently kept and maintained a pure line of G.portentosa (probably imported fairly recently compared to the older stocks in the US hobby), from "Masoala, Madagascar". Seeing as that institution kept the locality data and likely never introduced stock from other bloodlines, this strain should be pure, and since they've entered the pet trade and have been kept and distributed by a few hobbyists who are also particular in keeping lines pure, I've now got another line of pure G.portentosa to work with, that's probably from a different locale than any US hobby portentosa! 😁

I've got my 15 or so nymphs housed in a well ventilated enclosure with a thin layer of coconut fiber as the substrate. I'm using bark, paper towel rolls and eggcrate for hides, with leaf litter for additional cover/food. I'm keeping one third of the enclosure humid, the rest dry, and am keeping them at around 75-85F°. For food I'm offering dog food, fruits and veggies.

Here are some pics of a couple nymphs:

Quite dark compared to nymphs of the pure US strains, this is a variable species in the wild and this strain is probably a bit more variable in coloration than the stocks in the US (which have probably been line bred accidentally for certain, more consistent coloration over the many decades they've been in culture). I'm looking forward to seeing adults in person and documenting the extent of their color variation. 😁

Hopefully these will breed well for me, so that the US hobby will have yet another pure strain of G.portentosa in culture, with locality data to boot!

Anyhow, that's gonna do it for today, thanks for reading, hope you all enjoyed, stay safe, and I'll see everyone in the next post! 😉