Madagascar Hissing Roaches help

I just received a few adults to start a colony hopefully. These were given to me at a pet shop that had a 10 gallon tank FILLED with them. It was pretty obvious that they NEVER clean the tank. While looking at them today I noticed what appears to be tiny mites (?) crawling around on the roaches. Can you tell me what these could be and how to eliminate them from the roaches?
Thanks for any help!
James

Hissers have mites that only live on them to keep them clean. Ever hisser I have ever seen has them. It took me almost 6 months to get my colony clean and clear of them and as soon as i did my adults started bumping off so I am thinking you can't have one without the other its a partnership between the 2. You can Google it there is a lot of info on this on the internet.

tatz4ever said:

I just received a few adults to start a colony hopefully. These were given to me at a pet shop that had a 10 gallon tank FILLED with them. It was pretty obvious that they NEVER clean the tank. While looking at them today I noticed what appears to be tiny mites (?) crawling around on the roaches. Can you tell me what these could be and how to eliminate them from the roaches?
Thanks for any help!
James

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Texas Ranger said:

Hissers have mites that only live on them to keep them clean. Ever hisser I have ever seen has them. It took me almost 6 months to get my colony clean and clear of them and as soon as i did my adults started bumping off so I am thinking you can't have one without the other its a partnership between the 2. You can Google it there is a lot of info on this on the internet.

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Hmmm, ya don't say? I haven't really noticed these mites. I haven't really studied them up close and personal, so they could be there. Just leave 'em be?

maxttu said:

Hmmm, ya don't say? I haven't really noticed these mites. I haven't really studied them up close and personal, so they could be there. Just leave 'em be?

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You can control them which is what I do. I buy predatory mites every 6 months to a year and I think what killed mine off the first time was how I was told to get rid of them by washing the roach...... I have used the predatory mites 2 times and I think that all the hisser mites are gone now and they are still doing good..... So I think they can do good without them it just cost a lot of money because the predatory mites cost about a 100 bucks shipped . And yeah man look inbetween there legs and underside and around there head from what I was told is all hissers have them. And I also found out don't wash them off lol. If they bother you get the predatory mites to get rid of them . I don't know what effects they have on the other feeders and the reptiles because as soon as I found out they had them I was on a mission to kill them all. And have them away from my other feeders and reptiles until they were mite free.

Texas Ranger said:

Hissers have mites that only live on them to keep them clean. Ever hisser I have ever seen has them. It took me almost 6 months to get my colony clean and clear of them and as soon as i did my adults started bumping off so I am thinking you can't have one without the other its a partnership between the 2. You can Google it there is a lot of info on this on the internet.

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INTERESTING!!! I will see what I can find on Google! Thanks for the reply!

I found this on a site: http://pods.dasnr.okstate.edu/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-2827/L-278web.pdf
Nothing about a symbiotic relationship, and actually suggests removing them.
Good thing I only have 8 adults to clean, should be easy enough to make sure the future generations remain mite free. I wonder if I will have to do them again if there are eggs left behind?

"After you have had your colony or individual
roaches for a while, you may begin to notice tiny
light-colored creatures crawling on the roaches.
Similar to dogs getting fleas, the MHC sometimes
carries mites. These mites only live on the roaches
and will not harm them or live on humans. Often
their presence indicates a problem with sanitation
within the cage. (no surprise given the tank they came from)Leaving food or dead roaches
in the living environment can attract these mites
and provide a medium for their survival. Mites
can be removed by gently shaking the roach in a
plastic bag with a small amount of flour added.
The mites fall off the roach and into the flour.
Remove the roach, then tie up and discard the
bag. Gently spray the excess flour off the roach
with plain water from a plant mister or wash bottle.
Mites may also be removed by brushing the roach
with a small paintbrush. Repeat the treatment if
mites reappear. Do not attempt to use a miticide
to kill the mites, since this will also kill your pet."

Yeah that was the treatment I tryed but it didn't go over well. I have found a lot of threads were they say they a natural but can be removed but not harmful to the roaches. Th name of the mite is
"Androlaelaps schaeferi (formerly known as Gromphadorholaelaps schaeferi) is a mite that lives on the Madagascar hissing cockroach (Gromphadorhina portentosa). While it was formerly believed that it sucks body fluid from its host, coloring experiments have shown that this is not the case. Instead, it takes part in its host's meal. They are usually concentrated between the host's legs and around the spiracles."

I assume if I leave them (or still have them after cleaning) there would be no negative effect to feeding them to my lizards??? Do you use yours for food?

Another head scratcher came when I was cleaning my dubia colony and found a solitary earwig (EWWWWW) in the enclosure. Not sure where the hell that demon insect came from???

Lol that's funny I can't stand those things.

tatz4ever said:

Another head scratcher came when I was cleaning my dubia colony and found a solitary earwig (EWWWWW) in the enclosure. Not sure where the hell that demon insect came from???

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From what I have read they will not harm reptiles

tatz4ever said:

I assume if I leave them (or still have them after cleaning) there would be no negative effect to feeding them to my lizards??? Do you use yours for food?

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