Cockroaches are insects of the order Blattodea, sometimes called Blattaria, of which about 30 species out of 4,600 total are associated with human habitats. About four species are well known as pests.
Fast facts about Cockroaches
1. Cockroaches have been around since the time of dinosaurs! They have walked the Earth for hundreds of millions of years.
2. Cockroaches can eat just about anything, including paper, glue, soap, leather, even hair.and can survive without food for long periods of time.
3. A cockroach can hold its breath for 40 minutes, and can even survive being submerged under water for half an hour. They hold their breath often to help regulate their loss of water.
4. A cockroach can live about two weeks without water.
5. A cockroach can live for up to one week without its head!
6. Cockroaches can run up to 3 miles an hour.
7. Cockroaches mate one time; the female stores the male’s sperm throughout her twelve-month lifespan and uses it on an as-needed basis, producing up to 400 offspring.
8. There are places in the world where cockroaches are served as food. Countries like Ghana, Thailand, Mexico, China and even in some places of America they are served as food.
9. Cockroaches can sense the slightest changes in air movement and react within hundredths of a second.
10. If a cockroach is in your kitchen, you probably think it’s big. But consider yourself lucky, because most domestic roaches don’t come close to the size of their giant, tropical cousins. Some tropical cockroaches have a wingspan of 18 cm, or 7 inches.
