Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches for trade...

[JoeCapricorn]

I have 30 fairly large Hisser nymphs that at this point, taking care of them is impacting my health. Mantises don't cause any allergic reaction, but the roaches do. Even the big ones that I intend on keeping anyway.

There are several strict requirements for obtaining my baby hissers.

1) Only as pets. It is on your honor on this one.

2) You have the facilities and experience to take care of them (They are soooo easy though, shouldn't be a problem)

3) You do not have allergies to mold, or possible roach allergies - if you've been around roaches a lot for a long time and no problems occur, you should be fine. The reason I am giving away my babies is because I have allergies to the mold that is on their exoskeleton and in their poo.

4) You have been on Mantidforum.net for a while

5) You live in the United States or Canada.

6) Florida apparently has a ban on shipping roaches there, so... you can't be from Florida. :\

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Now, what I want for trade and what you have depends on how many roaches you'll be getting. This will be bugs for bugs, no cash involved. With a couple exceptions, all the bugs I want to receive are grasshoppers.

Minor orthoptera:

Small various grasshoppers from western states - 1 roach per 10 hoppers. Go outside and start catchin', but send a photo of what you have so I can identify the jewels.

Of these, it is unsure whether they are adult or not. If they are adult and less than 1.5 inches in length - 1 roach per 5 hoppers.

If it is possible to identify a grasshopper as being a "Bird Grasshopper" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schistocerca_nitens) - 1 roach per 2 nymphs

Definite "Rainbow Grasshopper" specimen: 1 roach per 2 grasshopper

http://bugguide.net/node/view/505132/bgpage - Picture of a rainbow grasshopper nymph. These are found out west in general.

Dragon Lubber grasshoppers - 1 roach per 1 grasshopper

http://bugguide.net/node/view/386665/bgimage

Horse Lubber grasshoppers - 2 roach per 1 grasshopper

http://bugguide.net/node/view/245356/bgpage

Plains Lubber Grasshopper - 3 roach per 1 grasshopper.

http://bugguide.net/node/view/220911/bgpage

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Non-Grasshopper orthoptera

Jerusalem Cricket / Potato Bug - 1 roach per 1 cricket.

http://bugguide.net/node/view/227083/bgpage

Pink Katydid - 5 roach per 1 katydid

http://bugguide.net/node/view/32354/bgpage

Ultra rare, but consider a find like this "Bonus points"

Red-Eyed Greater Arid Land Katydid (Neobarrettia spinosa) - aka the Red-Eyed Devil.

http://bugguide.net/node/view/430273/bgpage

5 roaches per 1 katydid.

http://bugguide.net/node/view/430273/bgpage

And if anyone has a female Orchid mantis, I'll send 25 roaches for one.

TL;DR version:

I want western LARGE lubber grasshoppers and the giant satan katydids from Texas. I don't have allergy problems with hoppers or crickets. I have 30 babies, but I might only give away 25. I want them to have good homes though.

I know this is early in the year for grasshoppers to come out. Northern green-stripe grasshoppers are already out, caught a couple female nymphs a few weeks ago. Eastern Lubbers should be starting to come out in Florida (consider them the same as Horse Lubbers in terms of roach-worth, by the way). Around this time, they would be small black hoppers with thin stripes. In both Eastern and Horse lubbers. Very distinctive. I want those. :3

I still have a grasshopper from last year. He is the oldest grasshopper ever, I think he hatched in April because I got him in May. They grew fast too, they were adult by July.