Turkistan Roach Care Sheet

Distribution: 
Turkistan, Afgahnastan, Middles East. There are also currently non-native populations in Arizona, New Mexico, California, Nevada, Texas and also Florida.
Description: 
Turkistan Roach a.k.a. Turkistan or Red racers a.k.a. rusty reds a.k.a Lats a.k.a. Blatta lateralis. Lats are a small fast moving roach. They are sexually dimorphic, males have wings and females do not. They cannot climb glass or plastic but Adult Males can sort of fly. These ARE a known infestation species although infestations are uncommon. It is believed that US Military introduced these to the US in the late 70's early 80's when we were returning from the middle east. These are a desert roach.
Size: 
1/16th when hatched to 1 inch as adults
Lifespan: 
6-12 months
Difficulty Level: 
Easy
Caging: 
Blatta laterals cannot climb glass or plastic. I like to house all of my roaches in rubbermaid or sterlite containers with screened lids. I suggest screening 80% of the lid as you can always cover part of it with a terry cloth towel to help retain humidity. Since the babies are so small, they can climb if there is the slightest amount of texture on your tote. Some people are keepingthem double tubbed to avoid escapees.
Substrate: 
I use egg crates positioned vertically for additional floor/living space. A substrate of coconut fiber (bed a beast, coconut coir) and sphagnum moss can be used as can other soil mixtures. If you use any kind of substrate from a hardware store or garden shop, MAKE SURE IT IS CHEMICAL FREE!
Required Temperatures: 
78-95
Humidity: 
40%-50% you can keep a spray bottle handy to help keep humidity up in drier areas or soak the above mentioned terry cloth towel and place it over some of the screened lid. Wetting down the substrate periodically can help maintain proper humidity as well
Food Requirements: 
Blatta lateralis will eat almost anything. I also keep my home made dry roach food available to them at all times. When feeding any fresh fruits or vegetables, do not put in more then they can eat in 24-36 hour period to avoid problems caused by rotten food. I also provide water gel to my roaches as a water source at all times.
Maintenance: 
Keep food and water available at all times. Clean out the waste as needed. I do not allow the waste to get any deeper then 1/2-3/4 of an inch. Since this species lays eggs it is important to remove the ootheca from the waste before disposing of it.
Breeding Notes: 
These are the most prolific of all of the roach species I carry. Females can lay 1-2 ootheca per month, each containing 20-30 roaches. The ootheca are susceptible to drying out and will hatch in 2-6 weeks depending on temperature and humidity.