Seeing as this species is quite prolific, while you could definitely start a colony out in a simple one gallon container, they will quickly outgrow that and will eventually need a 24-40 quart bin. As with all Eurycotis, all life stages are amazing climbers, and smaller nymphs can even climb over most barriers, so the lid on their enclosure must be absolutely airtight, and you may want to add some side access to their food bowls, as they will often rush to the top of the container if you so much as touch the enclosure. They should be given a moderate level of ventilation.
A thin layer of substrate like coconut fiber or potting soil should be provided, as well plenty of hides in the form of bark slabs, eggcrates, leaf litter, toilet paper rolls, "roach-huts", anything will do really. This species isn't that picky when it comes to moisture levels, I kept my entire enclosure pretty humid, others have kept their enclosures dry with a moist corner, others opt for a 50-50 approach, this species seems to breed well in all those setups.
Diet:
The normal roach fare of dog/cat/chick feed, fruits and veggies works great for this species, they are partial to fruit though, and the first few instars apparently experience high die offs unless offered fruit in their diet.
Temperature:
Temperatures from 75-85F° work best for breeding, but they may breed at lower temps, albeit probably at a slower rate.
Breeding/Life cycle:
Adults live for at least 6-7 months, and adult females lay ooths about once a week, which contain around a dozen eggs each. The oothecae take about 4 months to start hatching, and the resulting nymphs are quite large in comparison! The nymphs take around 5-6 months to mature, depending on the temperature.
This species is VERY tolerant of crowding, and are not that territorial at all. Even under overcrowded conditions, oothecae are very rarely eaten, and nymphs and adults almost never seem to cannibalize each other. All overcrowding seems to do is make the resulting adults TINY, other than that, they aren't all that phased by crowding. That behavior is quite unusual for this genus...
This species definitely breeds fast enough to use as a feeder, and they are tolerant of a surprising amount of neglect. That, coupled with the stunning adult coloration makes them a great addition to any enthusiast's collection, though I would definitely only suggest them to those who have plenty of predatory animals to feed them to...
