Cubaris sp "Panda King"

This is a small to medium sized Cubaris species, growing to around 1.5 cm in length. Their classic look is a rounded, compact body with a dark black base colour and one to several white or cream bands across the segments, giving the name "panda". The middle band can usually be found on the third to fourth segment of the body, although this can vary. Some individuals are sharply banded, while others are a bit smokier or greyer.

The Cubaris "Panda King" is the originator of a whole host of other panda king morphs. A few include "Red Panda King", "Pink Panda King", "White Panda King", "Black Panda King", and "Citrus Panda King". All of these come from the Panda King, so we have a lot to thank it for, and in your own colonies you may even begin to see some of these morphs develop. The colour and patterning can vary significantly.

Cubaris sp "Panda King" enjoys cover and darker pockets and is a burrowing species. Therefore, if you are starting with a small number, you may not see them out and about very often as they will spend much of their time in the soil. However, because they breed so readily, colonies tend to establish quickly, and larger groups become far more visible, with lifting a piece of cork bark often revealing hundreds in true panda king army fashion.
This species is capable of conglobation and moves at a moderate pace. They do not tend to linger, but they are not especially fast either.

This species prefers moderate to warm conditions of around 20 to 26°C, which is slightly cooler than some other species will tolerate. They thrive in high humidity and benefit from a dependable, fairly deep moss section that they can burrow into for moisture. A good working setup is roughly 60 to 70 percent moist side and 30 to 40 percent drier side, with the wet side anchored by moss. They prefer dark conditions, so keep them away from bright light. As with all species, stability is the goal, but with this species it is hard to go wrong. They require a deep substrate of around five inches to accommodate their burrowing behaviour.

As a baseline, I would always offer rotting hardwood and plenty of leaf litter as the core diet, with calcium available at all times. Whether it is because they actively seek calcium or simply due to colony size, mine go through it extremely quickly, likely a combination of both.

Beyond these core foods, they will eat most things and tend to clear it quickly. They show strong acceptance of protein rich foods such as fish flakes, fish sticks, shrimp pellets, and dried mealworms, as well as soft vegetables like carrot, zucchini, squash, and sweet potato. In short, they accept a wide range of foods and are enthusiastic feeders. Again you can't go wrong!

Compared with many Cubaris species, "Panda King" has a strong reputation for being a reliable, fast breeding and prolific species, especially once established. They have relatively large brood sizes for Cubaris and good survival rates, with low mortality when conditions are right.