Cockroaches prefer to settle in human homes, as this guarantees them constant access to food. This opportunity allows them to fully develop and reproduce without much difficulty.
To get rid of these pests in your apartment, you need to know what these insects eat, how long they remain viable without food, and how to protect food from their invasion.
What do cockroaches eat at home?
These insects are characterized by high vitality and are not selective in their food intake. Food for cockroaches is just a vital necessity that helps them survive. They are able to absorb any products that are present in a person’s apartment, and in order to get them, they mainly live in the kitchen, where they can always find something to eat.
Basic diet and preferences
Despite the fact that cockroaches eat almost everything, there are certain foods that tempt them the most. They love to eat animal proteins, starch and sweets. They are also attracted to foods containing fats, as well as those that have become moldy or sour. Therefore, at night, they look for food scraps and crumbs near the trash can, in the sink with unwashed dishes, behind the stove and on the kitchen floor.
Nutrition
Most of all, pests love:
- bakery products;
- cereals, porridge;
- vegetables fruits;
- meat;
- sweets;
- pasta;
- flour, starch;
- spices.
What smell attracts cockroaches?
These insects are attracted by all food smells. One of the most basic addictions of cockroaches is beer. The smell of malt drink makes them look for its source to satisfy their natural needs. Therefore, sometimes “advanced pest fighters” use beer as bait in traps placed around the apartment at night.
Water requirement
Cockroaches need not only food, but also water. Liquid is necessary for heat exchange in the insect's body. If they do not have access to it, then they leave such a home. Without water, cockroaches remain viable for up to 10 days. Therefore, to get rid of these uninvited guests in the house, it is necessary to exclude their access to the aquarium, replace old sewer pipes with plastic ones to reduce the amount of condensation, eliminate leaks, and also wipe the sinks and bathtub dry.
Feeding features of different types of cockroaches: how cockroaches work, what they eat, how to poison
Reading time: 5 minute(s) Cockroaches are one of the most tenacious insects. They easily adapt to different living conditions and can go hungry for a long time, so it can be difficult to cope with them. In order to better fight them, you need to know what cockroaches eat. This information is also necessary for lovers of exotic insects.
Features of the structure of the oral apparatus and food system of cockroaches
The cockroach has a gnawing type mouthparts. It is well developed and allows the insect to easily absorb plant debris, solid food, and even what can hardly be called food.
Oral apparatus structure:
- upper lip - it contains sensitive hairs that feel food,
- lower lip - has a tactile palp, pushes food further into the pharynx,
- upper jaw (mandibles) – grinds and bites food, is a chitinous plate with teeth,
- lower jaw (maxilla) - supports food.
The digestive system of the cockroach is also very interesting, which is even unusual for such a small insect.
- In the mouth and throat, food is moistened with saliva.
- Following further, in the intestine it is processed by digestive enzymes.
- In the stomach of a cockroach there are small outgrowths, chitinous plates, which grind food. This explains the omnivorous nature of insects: what cannot be chewed can be easily processed by the “chewing” stomach.
- In addition to this, special bacteria live in the cockroach’s stomach, which also help digest food.
What do pet cockroaches eat?
Our apartments are mainly inhabited by two types of these pests: the red and black cockroaches. Moreover, black is quite rare.
Red cockroaches, or cockroaches, are the most common and are more resistant to various insecticides. Another reason for the rarity of black cockroaches: out of the five years of its life, it spends four years in the lymph stage, and only one year as a sexually mature individual. Therefore, it simply does not have time to multiply greatly.
The omnivorous nature of cockroaches is due to the structure of their digestive system and gnawing mouthparts. Of course, they prefer foods, especially those high in fat and carbohydrates.
- Bread and pastries,
- sugar,
- confectionery,
- meat and products made from it,
- fruits vegetables.
But if there are no products or access to them is limited, cockroaches can also eat other substances:
- leather, shoes,
- paper, book bindings,
- wallpaper, wallpaper and stationery glue,
- soap,
- houseplants,
- fabrics,
- dandruff, particles of human epidermis.
It has been noticed that pests love beer. This weakness is often used to make baits and traps.
Diet for exotic cockroaches
Such species of cockroaches as Madagascar, marbled, and Egyptian are bred in captivity. These are large insects that are bred as food for amphibians and hedgehogs.
The Madagascar cockroach, which is famous for its size (can grow up to 10 cm), is even raised by some exotic lovers as a pet. Their reproduction and lifespan in captivity depend on the diet of insects.
Since these cockroaches are found in nature, their menu consists mainly of plant foods.
- Apples, bananas and other fruits,
- vegetables,
- various cereals, porridges,
- flour products, bran,
- some species eat cat and dog food.
How long can cockroaches live without food and water?
Since cockroaches are cold-blooded insects, they do not need to spend energy maintaining body temperature, so they can endure hunger for quite a long time. Some species of these pests can live without food for up to one month.
Moreover, if you consider that cockroaches are not picky when choosing food, and they eat almost everything, then it is not difficult for them to do without regular food.
Cockroaches can survive without water for no more than three days.
Therefore, if you wipe off the water in the sink or bathroom, and do not leave dripping faucets or water on the pipes, this will significantly reduce the population of these pests.
How to Use Cockroach Habits to Kill Them
- Cockroaches are very fond of scattered crumbs and garbage, so they can often be found near the trash can. Take boric acid powder, mix with egg yolk, flour and sugar, make balls from this mixture and place them near the baseboards and on the paths of cockroaches. You can simply sprinkle the powder in their habitats. By sticking to the legs of insects, the acid paralyzes and causes death.
- Having soiled their paws or antennae, cockroaches begin to clean them. This habit of cockroaches can be used to kill them. If you sprinkle insecticidal powder or smear baseboards and thresholds with gel, cockroaches will inevitably smear their paws in it. Thus, they will not only receive the poison themselves, but will also carry it to their nests.
What are pests afraid of?
There are some factors that scare cockroaches:
- Bright light.
- Cold.
- Heat.
- Lack of water.
- Smells.
- Also, some substances are very unpleasant for cockroaches; when they encounter them, they leave. These are boric acid, ammonia, vinegar.
If you go into the kitchen at night and quickly turn on the light, you can see cockroaches scattering in different directions. These are nocturnal inhabitants, and the light tells them of danger.
Since these are cold-blooded insects, they cannot heat their bodies on their own. Therefore, temperatures below -10-15°C are already fatal for them. If you leave your home open in winter, the cockroaches will freeze to death. True, there are some nuances here. The heating system may be damaged, and cockroaches will hide in the cracks.
Cockroaches love heat, but the boiling point of water is destructive for them. If you treat their nests with steam or boiling water, the insects will die.
Since cockroaches cannot live without water for a long time, it is necessary to block their access to it.
Cockroaches are afraid of persistent, strong aromas. These are essential oils of eucalyptus, anise, cedar. They cannot stand the smell of geranium, mint, tansy, wormwood, honeysuckle, and tea tree.
Interesting facts about domestic cockroaches
- Cockroaches are omnivorous. A curious fact is that cockroaches living in nature prefer plant foods, but domestic cockroaches are omnivores. They can eat soap, paper, plastic, leather, hair.
- It turns out that cockroach secretions and their decomposing remains can cause allergies and even provoke an asthma attack, especially in children.
- Teeth in the stomach. The fact that cockroaches can even eat things that are not food is explained by the fact that in their stomach there are special plates, “teeth”, which, moving, grind anything.
- Contribution to global warming. It turns out that cockroaches release gases every 15 minutes, and they do this even after their death for another 18 hours. Since there are so many insects on Earth, this turns out to be significant for the climate on the planet.
- A cockroach turned over on its back dies if it has nothing to cling to in order to turn over. He cannot roll over on his own.
- The cockroach is a unique insect that can live for about a month without a head! They breathe through special spiracles located throughout the body, they can go without food for about a month, they have no blood pressure, so they can live without a head for a long time.
- It turns out that cockroaches have tiny hairs on their legs that capture all air movements. That's why they are so difficult to catch.
By using all the information you have about cockroaches, you can better control them. Fortunately, there are enough funds for this on the modern market.
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How they eat?
Insects search for food at night. Scientists were able to calculate the amount of food consumed by one individual: it is 9.6 kg of dry food per year. The daily norm of food consumption directly depends on gender.
Females eat 2 times more than males. Such gluttony is associated with their function of procreation. By feeding regularly, they are able to reproduce offspring in the shortest possible time. During the day, the female eats up to 50 g of food, and the male eats 20-30 g.
Attention! The mouthparts of cockroaches are so well developed that they can chew through plastic.
Therefore, attempts by housewives to protect food by wrapping it in a plastic bag will not be able to stop these insects.
How to get rid of cockroaches
We have found out how and what kind of cockroaches appear in an apartment, now let’s figure out how you can get rid of uninvited guests in a short period of time. First of all, the fight against them must begin immediately. The essence of such deliverance is to carry out the following procedures:
- First of all, you need to thoroughly clean the apartment;
- It is mandatory to purchase only effective products, so it is absolutely not worth saving on them;
- It is recommended to use traditional methods in addition to chemicals;
- After the first treatment, approximately a few weeks later, re-treat the room.
Only an integrated approach to this problem will bring the desired results. Despite the fact that the chemicals offered by manufacturers to combat cockroaches are currently considered quite effective, professional sanitization of the premises, carried out by specialists in this field, is considered the most effective. After such treatment, not only cockroaches will be destroyed in the house, but also all other parasites that a person might not even suspect while living.
Another method of fighting cockroaches is freezing the room. Since these parasites are very susceptible to low temperatures, at sub-zero temperatures, individuals, as well as their larvae, completely die. But this method should be used with special caution, as it can provoke disruptions in the operation of utilities.
Of course, the choice of the most suitable method depends entirely on the financial capabilities of the person, as well as individual preferences. The only thing worth considering in such a situation is that the sooner radical methods are taken, the more positive the result will be. In addition, repeated disinfection of the premises will help prevent the re-development of these parasites.
What do they eat when there is no food in the apartment?
Cockroaches in an apartment feed not only on what people satisfy their hunger with. They consider book bindings, wallpaper, paper, and even the glue found on the back of postage stamps as a source of starch. They are able to extract protein from leather products present in the apartment.
Food for cockroaches can be:
- shoe polish;
- natural fabrics;
- fur;
- houseplants;
- cosmetic cream or lotion.
When widespread, causing a lack of food, these insects can exhibit cannibalism, eating offspring and weaker individuals. They are also able to feed on bedbug eggs and destroy other insects.
Where do cockroaches live in an apartment?
In a house infested with cockroaches, pests can often be found in the bathroom or kitchen - places where food and water are accessible.
Insects love dark, hard-to-reach places:
- cracks behind baseboards;
- under peeling wallpaper or tiles;
- in tables and cabinets;
- in a microwave oven;
- in the dishwasher;
- in the refrigerator (near the heat exchanger);
- in a gas stove;
- in computers, laptops (at power supplies);
- under the sink, in the toilet tank.
- in the electrical panel, garbage chute.
Pests enter a house or apartment through sewerage, ventilation systems, etc.
Video
Where do cockroaches hide in an apartment?
Do cockroaches bite people because they are hungry?
With a lack of nutrition, cockroaches can attack humans. They do this at night, and only as a last resort when there is a threat of starvation. The cockroach bites off pieces of the top layer of human skin. The insect can damage the skin in several places until it is completely saturated.
Cockroach bite
Favorite bite spots:
- brushes;
- eyelids;
- fingers;
- corners of the mouth;
- neck;
- earlobes;
- area around the eyes;
- inner thighs;
- nose.
Young children are at risk because their body odor is more attractive to cockroaches and their skin is softer.
How to cook
If you cannot buy fried cockroaches on the streets of Thailand, you can prepare them yourself by purchasing them at a pet store. Before cooking, it is advisable to throw them in the freezer for a couple of hours. They will not die, but they will go into suspended animation, which will make it possible to tear off their legs, antennae, hard chitin and head. By the way, a cockroach lives without a head for almost a week thanks to nerve ganglia distributed throughout its body, and dies because it simply cannot eat.
Decapitated cockroaches should be washed thoroughly, pressing on the abdomen to squeeze out feces, and then dried with a napkin. For the first recipe, you need to put them in a frying pan with a large amount of vegetable oil, adding chopped garlic cloves and rosemary leaves. Fry covered for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
The second recipe is cockroaches in butter. First, place cockroaches in a heated frying pan, and then a couple of tablespoons of oil. Squeeze a couple of cloves of garlic on top and season with a mixture of peppers.
Ready insects are salted and served as a snack. The peculiarity of eating them is that they must be chewed very carefully: the chitinous shell is not digested by our stomach. Those who have tried ready-made dishes have different opinions: some say it tastes like chicken, others say it tastes like beef. But they still look like cockroaches, and nothing can be done about it.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=OkVhS1EnAdE
How long can they live without food?
Cockroaches are characterized by high endurance. They remain viable without food for 10-45 days. Access to water plays an important role here. If it is not there, then the insects live no more than 10 days, and if it is present - 45 days.
Larvae can starve much longer than adults. This is due to the fact that they have a slow metabolism and do not need to spend vital energy to maintain a stable body temperature. The larvae remain viable without food for up to 2 months.
Secrets of Cockroach Fertility
Having met this timid and nimble arthropod in your own kitchen, you are unlikely to be interested in its gender.
Most likely, there will be an instinctive desire to catch the insolent person and destroy him on the spot, using the right slipper that comes to hand as a weapon. At the same time, many are interested in whether cockroaches have sex. Yes, they do have sexual differences, with males being more modest in size, having a genital plate (stylus) at their disposal and having more developed wings compared to females.
Reproduction occurs sexually, with the participation of both the female and the male. The process is preceded by mating games, when a female individual “attracts” a mustachioed partner by emitting an odorous secretion produced by the glands.
At the same time, the male, in an attempt to please, spreads his wings, trying to demonstrate exclusive flight skills.
If a couple has formed, then mating occurs and the male individual, using the genital plate, fertilizes the female, and then disappears back home.
In the female, a special membrane sac is formed in the back of the body - an ootheca, in which she forms a clutch.
The female drags the formed ootheca with larvae along with her for 2-3 weeks, but the process of maturation of the offspring can drag on indefinitely under unfavorable conditions (lack of water, uncomfortable temperature, lack of food).
A clutch in a leathery capsule can consist of 20-50 individuals in cockroaches and 10-20 in black cockroaches. Moreover, the red female is more fertile (more than 12 clutches), unlike her black friend (up to 20-22 clutches over the entire life cycle ).
The lifespan of these arthropods ranges from 4 months to 4 years.
We suggest you read: How to quickly and effectively get rid of cockroaches in an apartment forever
The development of small cockroaches occurs in accordance with the following scheme:
- 1. Larval stage developing in a container with eggs (lasts 2-5 weeks).
- 2. The nymph stage, during which many metamorphoses occur with the young creature. Thus, being born absolutely white, tiny and without a protective chitinous layer, cockroaches molt several times (8-9), acquiring standard color and size. The development process takes from 1.5 months to several years (under unfavorable conditions).
- 3. Adult stage, reaching sexual maturity. Prussians mature into adults faster (in 2-6 months), while their black counterparts take longer - 6 months-2 years. Insects remain sexually mature for 200-220 days, and during this period you can greatly increase your population.
What do you feed decorative cockroaches?
Some people prefer to keep exotic species of cockroaches as pets. They can also be used as a complete protein food for reptiles and amphibians. In this case, you need to carefully control what domestic cockroaches eat, since their nutritional value as food directly depends on the quality of food.
The diet of such insects should be balanced, including proteins and carbohydrates. Insects should regularly receive fresh fruits and vegetables, bread, cereals, cereals, and oat bran. Once a week, cockroaches should be given boiled eggs, cottage cheese, meat, as well as high-protein dry food for fish, dogs or cats.
Attention! Lard, tomatoes, nuts, bananas, and cheese should not be used to feed decorative cockroaches.
Damage from insects and food debris left behind
These pests spoil human food and make it unsuitable for further consumption. Insects carry pathogens of infectious diseases, as well as helminth eggs, on their shells and paws.
Spoils food
The chitinous shells remaining after molting gradually turn into dust, which a person inhales along with the air. It may cause an allergic reaction.
How to protect food from cockroach infestation?
Having free access to food is the main reason for the appearance of cockroaches in a person’s home. This leads to their massive distribution. To prevent food spoilage at home, you need to follow simple rules.
Among them:
- close the trash can tightly;
- remove waste daily so that leftover food does not remain overnight;
- the filter in the sink should be washed regularly with detergent, avoiding the accumulation of food residues in it;
- Wipe countertops regularly and keep them clean;
- Do not leave dirty dishes in the sink;
- all kitchen appliances must be constantly checked for crumbs;
- Store food in tight containers with an airtight lid.
Cat and dog food should also be kept in sealed containers to prevent pests from getting to it. You should put out a bowl of food only when it is necessary to feed the animal, and then thoroughly wipe the floor near the dining area.
Nutrition in natural conditions
The majority of insects in natural conditions eat leaf litter and rotten fruits that have fallen to the ground. The percentage of omnivorous cockroaches is smaller. Along with plant foods, they absorb dead animals and small insects. In the ecological system, arthropods play the role of scavengers. They utilize plant debris, carrion, and feces.
Diet of domestic cockroaches
An uninvited neighbor in an apartment building most often turns out to be a red cockroach or a Prussian. Representatives of the species are small, body length does not exceed 13 mm. The body is oval, the head is elongated. The color is yellowish coffee. Adults have wings. The larvae are dark and wingless. The colony is dominated by offspring of different ages. Insects are shy and avoid light. During the day they hide in secluded places. They can be detected by turning on the kitchen lights at night.
The second most common species is the black cockroach. The insects are large, males up to 26 mm, females up to 30 mm. Among adults, sexual dimorphism is pronounced. Males are elongated, brown or red-brown in color. Females are flatter, black and shiny. Their wings are reduced, representing a pair of short, leathery elytra.
Synanthropic species have foods in their diet that their wild relatives do not know about. Household insects are active at night; their favorite feeding places are garbage cans, a sink with dirty dishes, crumbs behind the stove and on the floor. In the entrances they gather near the garbage chute. What do cockroaches eat at home?
The list of products will be extensive:
- pasta;
- bread;
- vegetables and fruits;
- cereals and ready-made porridge;
- meat and sausages;
- leftovers of any dishes (soup, mashed potatoes, salad):
- flour and starch;
- spices.
Pests chew paper, often eat leather goods, and damage books. Creams, lotions, wallpaper and wood glue are suitable to satisfy hunger. Potted plants are under threat, because insects readily consume greens. Black cockroaches are prone to cannibalism. In difficult conditions, they attack larvae and eat discarded capsules with eggs.
