Pink Porcelain Roaches for Sale The Pink Porcelain Roach is the hobby name for Gyna capucina, the type species of the genus Gyna (porcelain roaches) and one of the most sought-after species in the US exotic-roach hobby. Adults reach roughly 27 to 31 mm with a glossy white body and pink-to-orange-pink wings that give the species its trade name. Hobby breeders consistently describe this species as “holy grail” material because of its beauty and its documented difficulty in captive culture. This is the harder sibling to our Gyna lurida “Yellow” cultivar, sold as a single nymph at $3 for keepers who want to try the species before committing to a larger colony. Overview Like other porcelain roaches in the genus Gyna, this species is a small African forest detritivore in the family Blaberidae. Females give birth to live nymphs rather than laying egg cases. Nymphs spend most of their time burrowed in substrate and the species is rarely seen above ground except when males emerge to forage or attempt mating. The pink coloration develops gradually over multiple molts as nymphs mature, which means a young nymph will not look like the photographs that drew you to the product. Patience matters with this species. Honest Note on the Name on This Page You might notice the current page title says “Gyna lurida” but the web address says “gyna capucina.” Those are actually two different roach species, and the right one for this product is Gyna capucina, the pink one. We are fixing the title. Here is how to keep them straight in your head: This product (Gyna capucina): the pink roach Our other product (Gyna lurida): the yellow roach, sold as the Yellow cultivar One more thing. Older versions of this page said this roach comes from South America. That is not right. All the porcelain roaches in this group come from Africa. So if you have read elsewhere that the pink roach is South American, that was a mistake too. Honest Note on How Hard This One Is to Keep This is not a beginner roach. Long-time roach keepers will tell you the pink porcelain is one of the trickier ones, for three reasons: They don’t like being crowded. If too many are in one container, the babies start dying off. They need more room than most roaches their size. They are picky about wet and dry. Most roaches are fine with damp dirt. This one wants the bottom of the dirt damp and the top dry, all at the same time. We explain how to do that below. Bugs in the cage bother them. Mites and other small pests stress them out more than they do other roaches. Keep things clean. If this is your first time keeping a fancy roach, start with the Yellow roach instead. It is much more forgiving. If you have already kept roaches before and want a challenge, this is the next step up. We sell a single baby for $3 so you can try one before committing to a whole group. Honest Note on Climbing and Flying Only the adult males can climb up smooth glass and fly. The babies cannot climb at all, and the adult females stay on the ground too. So most of the colony is not going anywhere, and you really only need to worry about adult males escaping. A snug-fitting lid solves this. It does not have to seal airtight, just snug enough that a flying male cannot push through it. Some keepers add a thin smear of petroleum jelly around the top inside edge as extra insurance against climbing males. That is optional. Honest Note on Not Crowding Them This is the most important thing to get right with this roach. If you put too many in one container, the babies will start dying and the colony will stall. Here is the rule of thumb breeders use: Roughly 2 to 3 medium-sized babies per square inch of dirt, max. If your container has more, get a bigger container. Pregnant females need quiet. If they get bumped by too many other roaches, they can lose their pregnancies. Keep things calm. Start small and roomy. A 1 to 2 gallon container is enough for the single baby in this listing. When you scale up to a breeding group later, jump to at least 5 gallons. Most people who fail with this species fail because they crowded them. Give them more space than seems necessary, and they will be much happier. Why Keep Pink Porcelain Roaches? Holy grail pink coloration. Adult females display a glossy white body with pink-to-orange-pink wings that are genuinely difficult to find elsewhere in the hobby. Type species of the porcelain roach genus. Owning G. capucina means owning the species the entire genus was named after. Manageable adult containment. Only males climb and fly, which simplifies enclosure design compared with G. lurida. Genuine breeding challenge. For keepers who appreciate the puzzle of maintaining a difficult line over generations. African porcelain diversity. Pairs naturally with G. lurida “Yellow” in separate enclosures for collectors building out the genus. Care and Setup Husbandry is intermediate to advanced. Most failures are caused by overcrowding, incorrect humidity, or pest exposure rather than by temperature or food. Enclosure A 1 to 2 gallon container suits a single trial nymph. Upgrade to at least 5 gallons before breeding begins. Use a tight-fitting lid (males can climb and fly, even though females cannot) and provide moderate to high ventilation through vented sides or top. Temperature 70 to 85°F is the active range, with 80 to 88°F driving optimal growth and reproduction. They do not tolerate sustained cool temperatures and should not drop below the low 60s. Humidity Gradient (Vertical) This is the husbandry move that separates struggling colonies from stable ones. Build a vertical humidity gradient: keep the bottom inch of substrate moist and the upper layers dry. The nymphs will choose the depth that suits them, and adults can move between layers. Do not soak the entire substrate. Documented breeders consistently recommend this approach over the “uniformly moist” setup that works for most other blaberid roaches. Substrate Provide 2 to 4 inches of organic substrate, well-aerated. A mix of coconut fiber, sphagnum peat, potting soil, and decaying wood or compost works well. This species burrows extensively, and substrate depth equals usable surface area for them. Habitat Structure Above-ground hides are less important here than for surface-active species, since G. capucina spends most of its time burrowed. Some branches, bark pieces, or cork bark give the males something to climb on while foraging. Leaf litter is useful but the species is less enthusiastic about it than other Gyna. Food They are omnivorous but prefer fruits and proteins over leaf litter. Scatter food directly on the substrate (no food bowls; nymphs cannot reliably access elevated dishes and may starve). Apples, bananas, peaches, berries, and small amounts of dog or fish food work well. Avoid citrus. Roach feed such as Supreme Feed Premium Roach Formula works as a supplemental dry option. Remove uneaten food within a day or two to avoid mold and mites. Hydration The moist lower substrate provides most hydration. Hydro-Thirst Insect Water Crystals work as a supplemental spill-proof source when needed. Pest Prevention This species is unusually sensitive to mite and pest infestations. Keep the enclosure clean, remove uneaten food promptly, and consider quarantining new arrivals from other colonies before introducing them. Breeding Notes Females give birth to live nymphs after roughly 5 to 10 months of nymph development, with males maturing one to two months earlier than females. This timing mismatch means that starting a colony from same-age nymphs often results in mature males with no available mates. Mixed-age starter groups are more reliable. Adults can live up to about 2 years under good conditions. Females may abort developing ootheca if disturbed, so a calm, stable enclosure with minimal activity supports successful broods. The single-count trial nymph in this listing is not intended for solo breeding; it is a test purchase for keepers planning to build a colony later from multiple orders or paired purchases. Best For Experienced Gyna keepers ready to graduate from G. lurida to the harder sibling species Advanced collectors specifically seeking the holy-grail pink phenotype Hobbyists comfortable with crowding-sensitive species requiring careful colony planning Breeders interested in the type species of the porcelain roach genus Patient keepers willing to accept slow colony establishment for a difficult species Not Best For First-time exotic roach buyers, where G. lurida “Yellow” or any of our Eublaberus species are far more forgiving entry points Keepers who want a heavily display-visible species, since G. capucina stays burrowed most of the time Volume feeders or anyone wanting fast colony growth, given the slow maturation and crowding sensitivity Setups vulnerable to mite or pest infestations Customers in jurisdictions that restrict non-native cockroach species; check local rules Anyone planning to release roaches outdoors under any circumstances, especially important for a flying species Origin and Locality Notes Gyna capucina was formally described by Gerstaecker in 1883 and is the type species of the genus, which means it is the reference species against which all other porcelain roaches in the genus are compared. The species is native to forested regions of equatorial Africa. The “Pink Porcelain” or “Pink Roach” trade names both refer to the same species and reflect the adult coloration. Our captive line is maintained separately from our G. lurida “Yellow” cultivar. Receiving and Acclimation Your order ships with ventilation and bedding suited to transit. On arrival, open the package inside a closed, contained area rather than in an open room, since adult males can fly if startled (nymphs cannot). Transfer the nymph into a prepared enclosure with a vertical humidity gradient (moist bottom inch, dry upper layers), substrate, and minimal disturbance. Give the nymph several days to settle and burrow before any further attention. As with every live insect we sell, do not release them into the wild. Recommended Add-Ons Gyna lurida “Yellow” for collectors building out the porcelain roach genus across separate enclosures, or as a more forgiving first Gyna species. Hydro-Thirst Insect Water Crystals for supplemental spill-proof hydration in the upper substrate layer. Supreme Feed Premium Roach Formula for protein supplementation alongside the species’ preferred fruit-and-protein diet. Ergaula pilosa “Big Black Beetle Mimic Roach” for collectors expanding into another small exotic genus. Hemiblabera tenebricosa “Horseshoe Crab Roach” for a non-climbing burrowing species to contrast with the Gyna. Frequently Asked Questions What does “holy grail” mean in the hobby context? It is informal hobby language for the most coveted and difficult-to-establish species in the US exotic-roach community. Gyna capucina earns the label because of the combination of striking pink coloration and the documented breeding challenges that have limited its captive availability for decades. Why is this species harder to keep than your Gyna lurida “Yellow”? Three reasons: crowding sensitivity that causes nymph die-offs, a vertical humidity gradient requirement that other roaches don’t need, and unusual pest susceptibility. G. lurida “Yellow” tolerates a wider range of setups; G. capucina needs more deliberate husbandry. What does the pink coloration actually look like? Hobby photographers describe it as pink to orange-pink, often appearing more orange-pink in photos than in person. The adult has a glossy white body with the pink color on the wings. Young nymphs are not pink; the color develops over multiple molts as nymphs mature. Why is this listing only a single nymph? The species’ difficulty and the practical reality that most buyers benefit from trying it before committing to a larger colony. At $3 for a single nymph, you can assess whether your setup suits the species before scaling up. How does this differ from your Gyna lurida “Yellow” cultivar? Different species in the same genus. G. lurida “Yellow” is yellow-and-brown, both sexes climb and fly, husbandry is forgiving, and a starter colony is the standard purchase. G. capucina is pink-on-white, only males climb and fly, husbandry is demanding, and trial purchases are the standard entry. Both are African porcelain roaches in the same genus, kept in separate enclosures. Should I be concerned about the “Gyna lurida” reference on the current product page? The current page title incorrectly says “Gyna lurida ‘Porcelain'” while the URL slug and body description both indicate Gyna capucina. We are updating the page to correct the title. The animal you receive in this listing is Gyna capucina, the pink porcelain roach. Learn More About Gyna capucina These references give keepers background on the species, the genus, and the challenge of maintaining holy-grail roach species in captivity. iNaturalist: Pink Porcelain Roach (Gyna capucina). A community-sourced species page with verified observation photos showing the wild-type pink coloration, useful for confirming captive stock against documented wild appearance. Wikipedia: Gyna (genus profile). A general overview of the genus, including the 31 accepted species and the African native range. G. capucina is listed as the type species, meaning the genus is anchored to this species’ formal description. Amateur Entomologists’ Society: Blattodea (Cockroaches). An overview of cockroach order biology, including the live-bearing reproductive strategy shared by Gyna and other blaberid roaches.