The Immortal American Cockroach

The not-so-humble American Cockroach is a moist little home invader that everyone hates seeing in their home.

The Immortal Child - taken by me

    In light of the current Hurricane Milton, I thought to myself "Which insect could survive, or even enjoy the wet, destroyed aftermath of a hurricane?" and only one slimy little creature popped up in my mind. The American Cockroach (Periplaneta americana) is a common sight around the world. Despite its name, they originate from Africa and the Middle East and were only brought to North America around the 17th century during the Atlantic slave trade. They can be distinguished from their long thin antennae, flat brown bodies and hairy legs. They also can be called by a ton of names such as the Palmetto Bug in the Southeast, Waterbug in the Northeast and the Bombay Canary in the central south.

       

    They eat a myriad of different things such as cheese, beer, tea, glue, and even dead flakes of skin. Their favorite thing to eat though is fermented foods. Their main place to inhabit is damp, dark places such as basements or sewer drains. They absolutely hate the cold though, so if you never want to see a cockroach again, move to Antarctica. They're mainly active during the night and they tend to crawl into your house searching for food. During their lifespan, these roaches can molt from 10-13 times before they eventually reach full adulthood, and normally after they molt, they're a white color. 

    

Freshly molted immortal one

        Now you might be wondering why I've been describing these insects as immortal. Truthfully, they aren't completely immortal. A simple whack with a shoe and they're sent straight to heaven. However, if we look at what they can survive, you might be very shocked at the results! The American Cockroach has been known to survive up to 3 months without food and a month without water! That's about 10x longer than humans can! On top of this, they've been known to live without air for 45 minutes and even without their own head if it didn't need to eat. If a nuke were to hit a city, roaches probably wouldn't survive the explosion itself (nothing actually can) BUT they are able to withstand radiation levels that no other organisms can; up to 15x higher than a human. Another fun fact for your nightmares is that this insect can run up to 50 body lengths per second, which is the equivalent of a human running 200 mph.

    Despite these amazing feats, it's wise to keep these insects out of your house. American Cockroaches can hold a lot of various diseases which include Dysentery, Salmonella, E. Coli, and a lot of other diseases. Palmetto Bug saliva and feces can also cause asthma attacks. The best way to keep these pests away from your house and prevent an infestation is by eliminating their access to food and water. Without any access to what they want, they wont have any reason to come into your home. If you need to kill one of these bugs, a well timed whack with a slipper will do the trick.

    Even though these cockroaches aren't as immortal as I stated in the title of this post, it's still very unwise to underestimate these insects. According to Action Pest Control, Cockroaches can have up to 400,000 babies a year and can reach full adulthood in 35 days. Infestations can happen quickly as these creatures hide in places that humans can't reach conveniently. Sometimes, not even an exterminator can completely destroy an infestation if it gets too bad. Major infestations of American Cockroaches can cause severe health issues so make sure they have no reason to break into your house. Stay safe everyone: from both Hurricanes and American Cockroaches... Also people with the name Milton).

Fully-grown immortal stages a break-in

Citations:

Alec Senese Business Development Manager Bayer Crop Science - Digital Pest Management. (2020, February 17). Did you know a cockroach could survive for a month without its head?. FoodSafetyTech. https://foodsafetytech.com/column/did-you-know-a-cockroach-could-survive-for-a-month-without-its-head/

Action Pest Control. (2024, April 12). How do cockroach infestations begin?. Action Pest Control. https://www.actionpest.com/blog/2015/february/how-do-cockroach-infestations-begin-/

Cockroaches fact sheet. Pronto Pest Management. (n.d.). https://prontopest.net/cockroaches-fact-sheet/

Home. D. (n.d.). https://www.dbugpest.com/about/our-blog/what-causes-cockroach-infestation