Cockroaches: Interesting Facts You May Not Know

When you mention the word cockroach in a group of people, the type of responses you get can be somewhat humorous. Many people cringe at the word, and the images their mind can form, like a roach running over their skin or even across a countertop. While roaches in our homes are a major annoyance, here are some cool facts that might change how you look at this pest.

Roaches will eat almost anything. From eating their own feces to sugary sweets, roaches will eat whatever they can find and have been known to eat hair, paper, grease, glue, and other such materials.

Roaches can go weeks without eating. Imagine if you could go up to six weeks without eating any food, like most roaches! You would have no problem sticking to your next diet.

Only a minute number of species invade our homes. There are well over 4,000 different species of cockroaches around the world and, out of these, only about 30 or so are the ones we love to loathe.

Roaches in nature provide a valuable service. The vast majority of roach species help with the decomposition and recycling of dead vegetation.

Roaches have been around longer than humans. Scientists have traced the earliest ancestors of modern roaches back some 350 million years ago. The modern roaches we know today evolved around 200 million years ago!

Roaches will live for weeks after being decapitated. Some people might think this is a myth, but actual scientific research was conducted to debunk it. Since roaches can go weeks without food, along with how their circulatory and respiratory systems work, they can continue to live before eventually dying from dehydration.

Roaches can be trained like dogs. Roaches can be conditioned just like dogs to certain types of stimuli with the desired responses. For instance, one study established roaches would drool after being conditioned to sweet scents and given a sugary snack.

We hope you have enjoyed learning a bit more about roaches. To keep your home protected from this unwanted guest, call MightyMite Termite at 408-377-3761 now to schedule a pest inspection!