How long do cockroaches live?
Cockroaches are insects that live in residential buildings, causing serious discomfort to people and pets. They multiply very quickly and in a short time can fill an entire apartment. It's not that easy to fight them. Even if you manage to kick them out of your apartment, they may reappear within a few months. Many people are interested in the question of how long cockroaches live and why they adapt so well to any conditions. After all, every second person knows about the endurance of these household pests.
Cockroach life stages
They reproduce by laying eggs. To do this, the female usually chooses the most secluded dusty place in the apartment, where no human hand can penetrate. The hatched larva is white and reaches 3 mm in length. Over time, its chitinous cover becomes hard. But the larva becomes an adult only two months after hatching, having survived several molts.
The adult life of a Prussian dog (a common representative of the red color) is 9-12 months, if it is not affected by various negative factors. A black cockroach can exist for two years.
How long do cockroaches live without food and water?
In fact, these insects do not have an urgent need for food. A red cockroach can easily go without food for a month and a half, and a black cockroach can easily survive for up to three months. This is all due to the fact that the metabolism of these household pests is many times slower than that of humans. After all, they are cold-blooded creatures. That is why, once they have eaten, they may not need food for a long time.
However, they need water just as much as humans. This is the same living creature that is not able to live without water for a long time. It is the main component of its cells, which is why a cockroach can only go as long as possible without drinking for a week. For this reason, these pests love to absorb waste, which always contains a sufficient amount of liquid.
Does a cockroach live without a head?
There is a very interesting fact about these insects, according to which they can easily do without a head. And this is very strange, because living organisms usually die without this part of the body. Moreover, both the body and the head can exist separately. All this is due to the fact that their body is structured differently than that of humans. If the head is lost, the circulatory system will simply be sealed with dried blood, and the cockroach will continue its life. Plus, he doesn't need to breathe through his nose like a human. Its breathing is carried out through special openings on the body called “spiracles”.
According to scientists, a cockroach can live without a head from nine days to several weeks. And he dies not because of the absence of this part of the body, but because food cannot enter the body in any other way.
It is not for nothing that the cockroach is called the most tenacious of all insects. After all, he is able to live from several days to several weeks without access to food and water. In addition, he can easily exist without a head. This pest is very different from other living beings because its body is structured differently. Thanks to its special structure, it can survive for a year if it is not affected by negative factors. As for black cockroaches, their lifespan can be up to two years, which is an incredibly long life cycle for an insect.
How long can one live without a head?
Researchers from the USA have determined how many days a cockroach can live without a head. During the experiment, it was found that a cockroach without a head continues to exist for up to 9 days.
And when specific conditions are maintained, this time increases and the insect survives up to three weeks..
In the course of the study, they established not only how long a headless cockroach lives, but also how long a head can exist autonomously.
Does a cockroach live without a head?
The question of how many days a cockroach can live without a head will seem strange to a non-specialist. Of course, not everyone would think of catching a domestic cockroach, tearing off its head and letting it go. But similar experiments have been conducted by scientists.
It turns out that the insect survives for 7-9 days even without a head. This feature is due to the openness of the circulatory system, central nervous system and gastrointestinal tract of the insect. If you remove the head, the blood on the neck will be baked, the blood vessels and other organs and systems will continue to function.
The insect will also continue to breathe, because it has small respiratory organs throughout its body. Areas of the nervous system are also present on the body, and nervous regulation of basic processes will occur in full. A cockroach will die of thirst, but will live even longer than with its head, because the area of moisture evaporation will decrease.
Thus, the vitality of cockroaches is high, and there is no point in hoping that they themselves will die without food in a couple of weeks. The only thing that can be done is to completely deprive them of water, and then they will definitely stop harming humans.
Why does the headless body of a cockroach function for a long time?
Under a microscope, Tipping decapitated the periplanet and sealed the sections with dental wax to prevent moisture from evaporating from the insect's body. He found that in sterile laboratory conditions, a cockroach can live without a head for several weeks. The word “live” here is conditional, since the body was passive and did not move much, but responded to touches.
On a note!
In non-sterile conditions, the body lives without a head for no more than 7 days, as it is “eaten” by mold fungi and bacteria.
And physiologist and biochemist Joseph Kunkel, who studies the development of cockroaches, had to explain why the headless body “lives” for many more days. Kunkel explained this phenomenon by the peculiarities of the internal structure of cockroaches. Compared to humans, a person dies from blood loss when decapitated. But even if the bleeding could be stopped, people would still die. The fact is that the center that controls breathing in people is located in the brain. When decapitated, the nerves stop receiving signals to control the intercostal muscles, and the muscles stop stretching and compressing the chest. There are no muscles in the human lungs; they inflate due to the expansion of the chest. As a result, when the brain dies, people suffocate, even if the head remains in place and there is no blood loss.
It's different for cockroaches. Their brain is very conditional. The insect has several nerve centers, ganglia, distributed throughout the body.
The pest does not need a nose to breathe; it breathes through spiracles on the abdomen. Scientists believe that the cockroach does not even need a blood flow system to supply tissues with oxygen. Air delivery through the spiracles occurs directly into the soft tissues of the parasite.
The lymphatic system is not closed, and the parasite has no analogue to human blood pressure. This is what allows the body of the cockroach to live for several more weeks after decapitation. The place where the head is cut off is immediately sealed with lymph and no fluid loss occurs.
On a note!
Cockroaches are cold-blooded creatures. When cooled, all processes in their body slow down. If you keep insect bodies in the refrigerator, they “live” longer.
What do cockroaches eat in an apartment?
Black kitchen cockroaches and red Prussians are the most common representatives of winged insects in Russia that interfere with normal human life. They are not able to exist for a long time outside of a human home and choose premises with the following conditions as their habitat:
- constant warm microclimate;
- high humidity;
- open access to food: crumbs on the dining table, leaky trash can, unwashed dishes.
One of the reasons for the high survival and stability of the red locust is its omnivorous nature and the ability to live without food for up to 40 days. The black kitchen cockroach can fast for 70 days.
The most preferred food for winged insects is any organic food - plant and animal scraps from the home table. This is the main reason for the appearance of arthropod pests in houses with unfavorable sanitary and hygienic conditions.
A living cockroach without a head is not a myth
An amazing fact, but insects can live without a head. This is impossible for humans and animals; their respiratory organs are located on the head. Arthropods have special stigmatic openings on the abdomen connected to the trachea. A system of tubes weaves around the internal organs and supplies them with oxygen. The circulatory system is designed in such a way that blood quickly clots in the vessels of the neck. They go without food for weeks.
The decapitated body retains reflex functions, it reacts to touch and can move. The most destructive factor for the insect will be the lack of opportunity to drink. The body regularly loses fluid through the chitinous covering. Without moisture it will dry out.
As a result of experiments, it was found that a cockroach lives without a head for 9 days.
The endurance of domestic cockroaches is high, but not unlimited. Knowing the vulnerabilities of insects, you can successfully fight them. Pests are destroyed using insecticides, lowering the temperature or installing traps.
Effect of temperature on insects
Cockroaches are known to love heat, so their activity depends directly on the ambient temperature. The temperature maintained in apartments and houses is very suitable for insects. And the most optimal is considered to be +2°С - +28°С.
When the temperature drops to 0°C, all vital functions of cockroaches, including reproduction, decrease.
When the temperature drops to -5°C - -10°C, cockroaches die in half an hour - a maximum of 40 minutes, and with each subsequent decrease, the insects die in a shorter time.
As for excessively high ambient temperatures, it also has a detrimental effect on insects. When it rises above +28°C, cockroaches begin to lose vital moisture, and at a temperature of +50°C they die within a few hours.
Survival of cockroaches without food and drink
How long can cockroaches live in an apartment without food and water? These cold-blooded insects do not expend energy on regulating body temperature, and their metabolism is tens of times slower than that of humans. That is why they can go into a kind of hibernation and starve for a long time. For example, Prussians live freely for up to 1.5 months, black insects live without food for up to 2.5 months.
A cockroach maintains life especially well if it has eaten heavily before a forced hunger strike. A hungry insect hides in a secret place and sits there until the person’s home smells of food again. If he is very hungry, he may well eat something that is not suitable for food:
- hair,
- paper,
- pieces of leather, etc.
It happens that, out of hunger, pests eat their own antennae or paws, or attack relatives.
It is known that cockroaches can even feed on inedible things (paper, hair, etc.), and can also eat their own kind
Without water, even such a tenacious insect as the Prussian or black cockroach cannot exist for a long time. Any process in their body is associated with water - they even eat moistened food, or immediately run in search of moisture. Sometimes, in case of poisoning, sufficient consumption of water saves the pest.
Moisture evaporates regularly through the vessels in the body, so the insect “dries out” and dies in about a week. Even a dense shell will not be able to retain water in the body. Therefore, in the question of how to get rid of cockroaches, it is necessary to take into account this feature and completely block their access to water.
Can cockroaches live without food?
They can do it for quite a long time: a red cockroach goes without food for up to 40 days, a black cockroach for up to 70. Cockroaches are cold-blooded creatures, and they do not need to expend energy to maintain the desired body temperature. The metabolism of cold-blooded animals is tens of times slower than that of warm-blooded animals. Therefore, it is enough for a cockroach to eat well once so that it does not need food for a long time.
On the other hand, insects are very sensitive to external temperature and even with a slight decrease in temperature they feel uncomfortable. It is on this fact that the principle of freezing cockroaches from the house is based, which in modern urban conditions is still not recommended.
The answer to the question of how long cockroaches live without food and water is decisive for carrying out preventive measures to combat them. While they can live without food for a long time, cockroaches cannot live without water. The maximum they can survive without moisture is seven days.
At elevated temperatures, water gradually evaporates through the chitinous shell of insects, and they actually dry out. It is for this reason that cockroaches prefer moistened food and places where there are at least microscopic drops of water. Moisture is also necessary for the functioning of the circulatory system of insects and for the digestion of food.
Do cockroaches live without a head?
Everyone knows that cockroaches are able to tolerate a huge dose of radiation. Of course, this dose has a limit - 15 times the safe level for humans. Then they still die. But the question about the separate life of the severed head and torso still exists.
Indeed, this is so - the body of a cockroach without a head can exist for some time, and the head too.
American scientists have proven that the body of an insect lives for about nine more days. This is explained by the fact that cockroaches have an open circulatory system.
When the head is torn off, the neck vessels are sealed with dried blood and circulation is restored. Oxygen enters the body of insects through the trachea (capillaries) in the chitinous shell, due to which the cockroach continues to breathe.
Very interesting. The brain as such is present, but the insect’s body practically does not need it. Throughout the body of the cockroach there are nerve nodes responsible for the basic functions of the body.
How long can cockroaches live without food?
The metabolic rate of poikilothermic creatures is twenty times lower compared to warm-blooded animals, so it is enough for a cockroach to consume food once so that the resulting energy is enough for a long period, including several weeks, without feeling hungry. This body structure has significant disadvantages. The main source of energy for cockroaches is external resources, that is, insects can live comfortably only in well-heated places; at negative temperatures, their population size decreases significantly.
Can cockroaches survive without food?
Cockroaches are cold-blooded creatures, so they do not spend energy on maintaining body temperature; their metabolism can slow down 20 times compared to warm-blooded creatures. Some types of cockroaches can live for 40 to 70 days without food. They can eat fairly infrequently and maintain physical activity at the proper level. Cold-blooded creatures also have disadvantages: they need warmth to maintain life, so pests live only in warm places, and if the heating is turned off in the house in winter, cockroaches will suddenly disappear in search of a new home.
Factors influencing the life of cockroaches
Life expectancy is influenced by environmental conditions and how cockroaches live: temperature, amount of water and food.
The answer to the question of how long cockroaches live without food may surprise many, because they can easily survive for a long time without food:
- “red” individuals – 40-50 days;
- black – up to 70.
This is explained by the structure of the body. Insects are cold-blooded, so they do not need energy to warm their bodies, and if there is a lack of food, they simply wait for a more favorable moment to feed. Therefore, the period of how many days cockroaches live without food can be so long.
Cockroach and food
Temperature conditions are of great importance for life: optimally +20ºС and above, but they cannot withstand the cold: already at -1 ºС the parasites die, which is often used in the fight against cockroaches, using freezing of the room.
The question of how long cockroaches live without water will be more relevant, because
For insects, a source of moisture is essential for existence. After all, without it, water evaporates from its chitinous shell, gradually dries out, and the process of digesting food and the functioning of the circulatory system slows down.
The structure of the insect's body with the help of moisture allows it to maintain the necessary thermoregulation, and excess liquid is released through the Malpighian vessels. At night, the chitinous cover helps conserve water, even in high temperatures or dry air.
If there is no liquid intake for 7 days, the cockroach “shrivels up” and dies. Therefore, the most necessary food for pests is waste or any sufficiently moist food that is easier to digest and adds much-needed moisture to their body.
Cockroach without a head
Known for their tenacity, cockroaches are often talked about as creatures that can survive a nuclear war. Some even claim that these arthropods can exist without a head. It turns out that this is a real fact: sometimes a headless cockroach lives for weeks .
“To understand why insects can survive decapitation (decapitation), we need to understand why this does not happen in humans,” says physiologist and biochemist Joseph Kunkel of the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Decapitation in humans leads to blood loss and a drop in blood pressure, which in turn interferes with the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to vital organs. In addition, a person breathes through the mouth or nose, and this vital function is controlled by the brain; therefore, after decapitation, breathing stops.
In order for blood to pass through the vast network of human blood vessels, especially through the thinnest capillaries, it is necessary to maintain pressure at a certain level. In arthropods, the circulatory system is structured differently: it is not so extensive, it lacks thin capillaries, which allows the pressure to be significantly lower.
“When you cut off the head of a cockroach, the blood vessels in the neck become clogged with clotted blood,” notes Kunkel, “and no fatal bleeding occurs.”
Moreover, these tenacious creatures breathe through spiracles - small holes on each segment of the body. The cockroach's brain does not control breathing, and oxygen is carried throughout the body by blood; air enters the tissues directly from the spiracles through the tubes (tracheas).
In addition, cockroaches are poikilothermic creatures, i.e. cold-blooded. Consequently, they do not expend energy on maintaining a constant body temperature, and therefore can be content with much less food than humans. After eating once, they are able to live for weeks afterwards.
“Unless they are attacked by some kind of predator, they will just sit quietly and motionless,” says Kunkel.
Cockroaches have ganglia in each segment of their body—clumps of nerve tissue capable of performing basic reflex nerve functions. And without a brain, the insect's body can function at the level of simple reactions. It is able to stand up, respond to touch and move.
A single head may also continue to function and move its whiskers for several hours. If you refrigerate it, it will last even longer.
Decapitating a cockroach may seem creepy to some, but researchers have conducted many experiments with the bodies of these insects to answer some serious questions. Decapitation deprives the arthropod's body of hormones that control maturation and are secreted from glands located in their heads. This discovery allows scientists to study metamorphosis and reproduction in insects, and also reveals how neurons work.
Life span and survivability
The red cockroach turns from a nymph into an adult in the summer at a temperature of about 30°C after 2 months. If the temperature is 20°C, this transformation takes up to 6 months.
The red cockroach lives in a house or apartment for 9-10 months. Of these, adults live for 20-30 weeks, the rest of the time the larvae develop. lives less than the red one by a couple of months. Without food and drink, the life expectancy of cockroaches decreases. Without food, the red cockroach lives about 50 days. The lifespan of a black cockroach without food can be 70 days. This is due to the fact that domestic cockroaches are cold-blooded creatures. They do not waste energy maintaining a constant body temperature. If there is no food, they can simply hide and wait for food to appear.
Red representatives turn from nymphs into adults in 2 months in summer and 6 months in winter
The vitality of cockroaches drops sharply along with a decrease in ambient temperature. Prussians begin to die already at a temperature of -1°C. Therefore, cold is a good method of combating these creatures. How many years do insects of this species live without water? Water is the most important thing in the life of cockroaches. Without inviability, it lasts up to 7 days.
Moisture intensively evaporates from the surface of the shell, and the insects dry out and die. This is why Prussians are more willing to eat moistened food or its waste. It is easier to digest in the body and contains enough moisture.
Can an insect live without a head?
Yes, a cockroach lives without a head
Weird question. But American scientists, after conducting a series of experiments, were able to prove that a headless cockroach also continues to live (up to 9 days). The thing is that their circulatory system is not closed. They do not lose blood and therefore continue to live. But in this case they cannot get food and water.
The respiratory process does not occur with the help of the head, but with the help of holes, spiracles on the body and small tracheas.
The brain does not take part in breathing. It is not particularly needed for life, since in all parts of the body there are ganglia - nerve nodes. They are fully responsible for all reflexes. The insect can move its legs, stand up and move.
How many years do red house cockroaches live?
The property of all representatives of this family is considered to be an incomplete development cycle, which means that this species does not have a stage of transformation of larvae into pupae. After fertilization, female cockroaches carry eggs on their stomachs for some time, in a container specially designed for this purpose - the ootheca.
Over time, the eggs begin to grow and the ootheca becomes more swollen and severe. After about 2-4 weeks, female cockroaches shed their offspring, hiding them in an inaccessible place, most often warm and humid.
After this, nymphs hatch from the eggs - small white cockroaches (up to 3 mm).
Females of some species of cockroaches bear their offspring in the ooteca until the moment of birth and even care for them for some time.
Over time, the nymphs begin to become darker, their “shell” hardens, but in order to turn into an adult, the cockroach must go through several molts. Depending on the temperature, this may take different times.
Red cockroaches transform from nymphs into adults during the following period:
- 2 months in the summer, if the air temperature is above 30 degrees;
- 6 months, at a temperature of about 20 degrees.
An adult cockroach is called an imago, its average lifespan varies between 20-30 weeks.
Black cockroaches can live much longer - up to two years, as their development periods are slower.
Under certain conditions, the life cycle of these insects can be significantly shortened.
How long can they live without a head?
Now let's find out whether the well-known fact that cockroaches can easily live without a head is true or fiction.
Due to the peculiarities of breathing (the insect breathes through tracheas, which are located throughout its body), the cockroach will not suffocate in the absence of its head. The digestive, nervous and circulatory systems also work almost independently of each other. If a cockroach's head is torn off, the neck vessels will become clogged, the blood will clot very quickly, and the entire blood supply system will function as before. This is why a headless insect can live for almost 10 more days!
But there are a couple of things. The cockroach's mouth is still located on the head, so it will not be able to feed; under other favorable conditions, the insect will soon die from hunger and dehydration. And without eyes, a cockroach will not see where to crawl, and accordingly, it will be very difficult for it to hide from the enemy.
There is an opinion that this tenacious insect is capable of surviving even the apocalypse. Well, perhaps, unless permafrost becomes a “companion” of the end of the world.
Can cockroaches live without water?
Cockroaches can live for a long time without food, but they can live no more than a week without water. Water is the source of life for any living creature and insects are no exception. Water plays a big role in life processes; it is necessary for food processing, for the functioning of internal organs and for thermoregulation, which is very important for cold-blooded creatures.
Can a cockroach live without a head and why?
American scientists decided to study the body of cockroaches and find out whether a cockroach can live without a head. After a series of experiments, scientists came to the conclusion that a cockroach lives without a head for 9 days, and under certain conditions it can live for several weeks. Scientists did not stop there and decided to find out why they live for so long without a head.
It turned out that the internal structure of cockroaches is fundamentally different from that of humans and is designed according to a completely different principle. If a person is decapitated, his body will lose most of the blood and the oxygen supply will stop, but in an insect, blood clots will immediately close the wound and blood loss will be insignificant, and blood pressure will be restored.
Unlike humans, a cockroach does not need a head to breathe, since this function is performed by special spiracles located on the body of the pest in the form of tubes through which oxygen enters. The insect does not need a head for normal air intake, so they can live without it for several weeks. Theoretically, they can live longer, but without a head, food does not come and after a few weeks he dies of hunger.
The head of a cockroach is not such an important organ, since nerve clusters (ganglia) are located throughout the body, which send signals to the body, and the insect can carry out movements at a reflex level. Headless cockroaches can move and even move, but due to the lack of information that should come from the head, their movements are chaotic and meaningless.
Physiology
Adults have wings that have pink flight muscles that can support long flight. However, they usually only glide over short distances. The larvae lack wings and prefer to hide in fallen leaves or burrow into the substrate.
Cockroaches, including B. craniifer, are known to possess independent pulsating blood organs within their antennae, also known as the antennal heart.
B. craniifer has been found to be capable of regenerating some of its tissues. He can regenerate more proximal tissue and structures at a more distal amputation level in his leg after the distal femur of the front leg has been transplanted to the proximal femur of the hind leg. This discovery led to the conclusion that some insects are capable of regenerating certain tissues, and the most common type of regeneration in B. craniifer is intercalary regeneration.
Cranifer larva in captivity, Wiesbaden Museum, Germany
Total life expectancy
One of the most interesting questions remains how long cockroaches live. To answer this, you need to familiarize yourself with the growth characteristics of these pests. All representatives of these insects have an incomplete development cycle. This means that a larva (nymph) hatches from the egg, which after a series of molts becomes a full-fledged adult (imago). However, how much time passes from the moment of hatching to the physiological death of the Prussian?
Conventionally, the entire life cycle that red, black or any other species of cockroaches go through can be represented in the following sequence of events:
- After laying eggs in the ooteca (capsule where the female stores them) and until it swells, an average of 4-5 weeks pass.
- Then the female sheds the ootheca in some secluded place, where after a couple of days small (up to 3 mm) larvae hatch from it.
- Nymphs already lead an almost normal lifestyle for cockroaches at home, with the exception of the reproductive function.
- After a certain number of molts, the larvae mature and turn into imagoes (adults). At temperatures of 30°C and above, this process for red cockroaches takes about 2 months. If the thermometer readings are within 22-25°C, the time increases to six months.
The total lifespan of the average red locust, which is most often found in people's homes, is 9-10 months. At the same time, it is sexually mature for 20-30 weeks, which allows you to very quickly increase the size of the pest population. The high fertility of female insects plays an important role here.
Life stages of a cockroach
All cockroaches have an incomplete development cycle, i.e. without the stage of transformation of the larva into the pupa.
- In most of them, females, after fertilization, lay eggs in the ooteca (small light sac) and carry it on their stomachs. Over time, the ootheca darkens and begins to swell from the eggs growing inside, which takes from two to four weeks;
- Females of some species shed the ootheca into a secluded (warm and moist) place, most often into some hard-to-reach crevice, where tiny white cockroaches (nymphs) about 3 mm long hatch from it. In other species, females carry the ootheca on themselves until the eggs hatch and even care for them for some time after that;
- Over time, the nymphs darken and their chitinous coverings become hard. After going through the stages of several molts, the nymph turns into an adult, which for very common red cockroaches takes about 2 months in the warm season (at temperatures of 30 degrees and above) and up to six months at a temperature of 22 degrees. The lifespan of an adult (imago) red cockroach is 20-30 weeks;
It turns out that from the moment the nymph hatches, the Prussian theoretically lives about 9-12 months, if nothing interferes with it.
There are species of cockroaches that live for several years, which includes the black cockroach (can live up to two years). The total number of individuals in a colony can increase thousands of times 3-4 months after a small number of parasites enter the home. This interval is explained by the longer life of females, which are very fertile, than that of males, as well as the long development of eggs.
Can cockroaches live without food?
These insects can actually go for quite a long time without eating. Red cockroaches live up to 40 days without food, and black cockroaches live up to 70 days. This is due to the fact that they are cold-blooded creatures (poikilothermic), which means they do not need to expend energy to maintain a certain body temperature.
The metabolism of such organisms is 20 times slower than that of warm-blooded organisms, and a cockroach only needs to eat once to then live for a long time (even several weeks) without experiencing hunger.
It is also useful to read: Why cockroaches are dangerous to human health and what harm they cause
And one more thing: Good old Karbofos poisons cockroaches with a bang - watch our video...
On the other hand, the main source of energy for poikilothermic organisms is external sources, so cockroaches live only in heated dwellings, and at sub-zero temperatures their numbers are sharply reduced (this can be used to combat cockroaches by freezing the room).
Do cockroaches and bedbugs live together?
On the Internet, there are comments from users who say that bed bugs do not live with cockroaches under the same roof, and that they allegedly displace the other. But this statement is not confirmed in practice. Both bedbugs and cockroaches have natural insect enemies, such as flycatchers or predatory wasps, but these species do not pose a danger to each other.
Bedbugs and cockroaches live together without problems, since their food and territorial interests do not overlap. Even with high numbers of both populations, when these species coexist, for example, in the same dorm room, they do not conflict with each other. Proof of this is shown below in the footage taken on the phone.
How long does a domestic cockroach live?
Each type of cockroach lives for a certain time. Also, the lifespan of an insect can vary depending on the conditions in which it is found.
Prusak
14-21 days after the female lays eggs, larvae appear from them. Under favorable conditions, nymphs turn into adult cockroaches after 2 months. The average lifespan of an adult insect is 7-9 months. Thus, the life expectancy of a Prussian, starting from the moment of birth, is from 9 to 11 months.
Black beetle
The lifespan of black cockroaches is slightly longer than that of black cockroaches. The duration of existence of males is on average 110-160 days. Female black cockroaches have a lifespan of up to 180 days. The period of development in black cockroaches from egg to adult includes several intermediate larval stages and directly depends on the temperature regime of the environment.
When the larvae appear in the summer months in regions with a warm climate, the maturation period takes up to 200 days. In areas with prolonged cold weather, black cockroaches can grow for 750-800 days.
The average development period is 500-600 days. The total lifespan of black cockroaches is about two years.
American cockroach
The full life cycle of the American cockroach is approximately 600 days. Of this time, the imaginal stage accounts for about 400 days. The lifespan of American cockroaches is influenced by environmental humidity and air temperature.
At what temperature do cockroaches live?
Not everyone knows at what temperature cockroaches feel most comfortable. These are heat-loving insects that prefer to live in heated rooms. The most comfortable air temperature for cockroaches varies from 22 to 28 degrees Celsius. Therefore, insects prefer to settle in houses, apartments, hotels, offices, basements and sewer systems
How long can they exist: without food, without water, without air, without a head?
Cockroaches are very tenacious insects; they can go without food and water for a long time. The cockroach's digestive system is different from most animals and insects. Metabolism in cockroaches is 20 times slower than in humans. In addition, there is no need for energy expenditure to maintain the insect’s body temperature. Prussians can live without food for 40-50 days, and black cockroaches - up to 80 days.
Water is the basis of cellular processes in all living things, including cockroaches. Without access to water, insects die after 4-5 days.
Cockroaches can survive without oxygen for 40 minutes.
No matter how strange this statement may sound, a cockroach can live without a head for about 9 days. When decapitated, the insect does not die from blood loss, since the vessels are quickly sealed with clots. The circulatory system inside the body operates as normal. In addition, oxygen enters the cockroach's body through spiracles - small holes located on each segment of the body. The insect's brain does not control breathing; oxygen is carried throughout the body by the circulatory system. Air reaches the tissues directly from the spiracles through the trachea.
The ability of the pest to live without a head is explained by the special structure of the insect: its nervous, digestive and circulatory systems are not looped and are relatively connected to the brain.
How long do cockroaches live after disinfection?
Professional disinfection involves the use of highly toxic substances to kill cockroaches. If the apartment treatment technology is followed, insects die in one procedure. After disinfection, cockroaches live for another 7 to 14 days.
Do cockroaches and bedbugs live together?
Bedbugs and cockroaches can easily coexist in the same apartment, since they have different lifestyles, diets and habitats. Cockroaches prefer to live in the kitchen, where there is water and food. Bed bugs try to get closer to humans because they feed on blood. Prussians and black cockroaches do not eat bedbugs.
Do cockroaches live where ants live?
It is very rare to see cockroaches and ants in the same apartment. Many scientists believe that these insects do not get along with each other. Pharaoh ants cannot cope with an adult and healthy insect, but they can easily destroy newborn nymphs and weak adults.
Cockroaches can live for a long time without food, water, or even their heads. It is not surprising that insects are quite difficult to remove from houses and apartments. To combat them, you need to stock up on chemical insecticides and, most importantly, patience.
20 interesting facts about cockroaches, for example, how many cockroaches live on earth:
How many years do cockroaches live?
Under favorable conditions, domestic red cockroaches live from 9 to 16 months. They may die earlier from insecticides, cold and heat, and less often from diseases. Among synanthropic cockroaches, the record holder for life expectancy can be called the black cockroach. She reaches 2.5 years. The American cockroach has a slightly more modest lifespan - 26 months.
Interesting fact
If you deprive a Prussian of his head, he will not die. It's all about the special structure of the body:
- blood clots quickly form in the vessels, which protect against blood loss;
- the cockroach breathes through the surface of the chitinous cover;
- nerve nodes are located throughout the body.
How long does a cockroach live without a head?
It all depends on external conditions and water reserves in the body. If the situation develops favorably, the insect can survive for several weeks. But in real conditions, the cockroach will quickly die due to the lack of antennae, with the help of which it navigates in space and predicts the threat.
How many years do red and black cockroaches live in natural conditions?
These types of insects are absolutely not adapted to exist in the natural environment. Synanthropic insects always build nests and lay eggs in residential and industrial premises with comfortable conditions. If you move a cockroach into the natural environment and do not give it the opportunity to change its habitat, it will quickly die from external aggressive factors.
How to prevent insects
Cockroaches can appear in the house for various reasons. They run from neighboring apartments, enter the apartment with products or equipment purchased in the store, and crawl along risers from basements and boiler rooms.
The life cycle of insects is closely related to water, food and external temperature, so to reduce the likelihood of cockroaches you need to:
- Use tightly closed containers for storing food and do not leave them in the open;
- cover the ventilation holes with nets, treat cracks and crevices;
- use a trash can with a sealed lid and take out the trash daily;
- water the flowers in the first half of the day so that the liquid from the trays has time to evaporate before the evening;
- wash dishes immediately after use, carefully removing any remaining food and grease from the sink;
- Wipe kitchen surfaces and plumbing fixtures dry, and make sure that no water drips from the taps.
In addition, it is important to regularly clean and ventilate the room. In unsanitary conditions, insects multiply faster, so keeping the apartment clean is the best preventive measure against cockroaches
https://youtube.com/watch?v=9ifRJ7hUv7c
Normal life cycle of cockroaches
Most often, red cockroaches, or cockroaches, appear in a person’s home - insects with a body ranging from light brown to dark brown. Black cockroaches are less common, but, as a rule, they settle only in houses and apartments with high humidity (old houses, with leaking plumbing or a damp basement). The vitality and endurance of any type of domestic cockroach is approximately the same, and it is time to create legends about it.
The life cycle of pests is different from that of many insects. They lack the pupal stage, so the cycle is considered incomplete. It looks like this:
- Fertilization of a female by a male.
- Deposition of eggs in a strong capsule, or ooteca.
- Carrying a capsule with eggs on the stomach, and later storing it in a secluded place.
- The emerging nymphs are up to 3 mm in size, transparent-whitish in appearance, resembling a small cockroach.
- Molting of nymphs (6-10), upon completion of which the insects acquire a dark color and the hardness of the chitinous cover.
- The appearance of the imago - an adult insect.
How many years do cockroaches live as adults? Typically, the lifespan of red cockroaches is limited to a year, but black insects can live up to 2 years. The warmer the room, the longer the life of insects (of course, up to reasonable limits). Males usually die faster than females. In houses and apartments where the temperature is constant and ventilation is rare, pests will multiply very quickly - behind radiators, cabinets, wallpaper.
Life cycle of cockroaches
In the European part of Russia, there are 2 types of domestic cockroaches: red cockroaches and black cockroaches. Both species are practically omnivores: cockroaches live by eating not only food waste, but also paper, soap, electrical wiring, fabrics, etc.
These tenacious insects have a development cycle characterized by incomplete metamorphosis, i.e. absence of the stage of development of the larva into the pupa:
- After fertilization, females lay down about 30 pieces. eggs into a capsule on the abdomen called an ooteca. Over the course of 2-4 weeks, as the eggs grow, it darkens and increases in size.
- After maturation, the ootheca is discarded by the female in a hard-to-reach place, warm and humid, necessary for the further development of the nymphs hatched from it - white cockroaches 2-3 mm in size. Some types of parasites carry a capsule immediately before the babies hatch and can look after them. There are also viviparous species, the most famous of which is the Madagascar cockroach.
- Within 2 months at a temperature of about 30ºC, the nymphs grow, go through the molting stage, the chitinous shells become harder, and they turn into adult insects. Under more unfavorable conditions and lower temperatures, development may be delayed by up to 6 months.
- Rufous adults can live 20-30 weeks depending on conditions.
As a result, it turns out that from the beginning of the appearance of the nymph, red cockroaches live on average up to 1 year, if nothing interferes with them. During her life, the female manages to bear 4-10 ootheca, which contributes to the birth of up to 300 young parasites.
The lifespan of a black cockroach is much longer, up to 2 years. All types of such pests, under favorable conditions, are capable of multiplying very quickly, and in 3-4 months the colony can increase thousands of times. In addition, females live a little longer than males, managing to bear large offspring many times during their lives.
Question-answer section
If you are wondering whether longhorned beetles can fly, or whether they can see what drugs are considered effective against them, all these questions can be asked to specialists on the information portal. They know almost everything about insects of the cockroach order. Entomologist Larisa Petrovna Ergina (18 years of experience in her field) answers the questions.
How long do domestic red cockroaches live?
Expert opinion Evgeniy Igorevich Bragin Entomologist, 19 years of scientific experience.
“The duration of existence of Prussians is always different, varying from 9 to 16 months. Lifespan is highly dependent on environmental conditions
When exterminating such insects, it is important to understand how long domestic cockroaches live; you need to regulate the air temperature and humidity at home, as well as access to food.”
Can pet cockroaches fly?
Expert opinion Anastasia Nikolaevna Mikhailova Expert on garden insect pests, biologist, chemist.
“Of the synanthropes, only American long-horned beetles move long distances using their wings. Sewer specimens are only capable of crawling. Prussians also have wings, theoretically they should be able to fly. However, these insects can only glide through the air.”
How many legs (legs) does a cockroach have?
Expert opinion Galanin Valery Aleksandrovich Acarologist, research institute employee, specialization arachnids
“According to long-standing descriptions, there have never been baleen pests with many limbs. Representatives of all species of the order cockroaches have 6 legs. By the way, the basic functions of the body and internal organs are also the same (we do not take into account differences in gender, individual traits of individuals of each variety).”
Speed of a cockroach?
Expert opinion Evgeniy Igorevich Bragin Entomologist, 19 years of scientific experience.
“In insects of different species, this parameter always changes. But most individuals crawl quickly, even some large longhorned beetles (for example, the American pest reaches speeds of up to 75 cm/s).”
Cockroach nymphs emerging from the ooteca
How long can a domestic cockroach live without food?
Expert opinion Anastasia Nikolaevna Mikhailova Expert on garden insect pests, biologist, chemist.
“Insects do not die as quickly as expected without food. The duration of existence can be 2 weeks or 2 months. Males die first; females and larvae live the longest without food. In this case, food can consist of wood and paper. But if sources of nutrients are completely absent, longhorned beetles still live for some time.”
Where do cockroaches live in nature?
Expert opinion Galanin Valery Aleksandrovich Acarologist, research institute employee, specialization arachnids
“The best habitats in terms of comfort and safety: leaf litter, areas under stones and fallen trees. Some individuals can live on the shores of reservoirs, others – underground (they constantly dig tunnels and spend time in them).”
Are cockroaches smart?
Expert opinion Anastasia Nikolaevna Mikhailova Expert on garden insect pests, biologist, chemist.
“We cannot say that mustachioed pests are geniuses, because their brains are primitive compared to humans (this function is performed by one of the nerve nodes). But one cannot fail to note their intelligent behavior: insects do not appear from their shelters during the day, quickly navigate the terrain, easily find food, and survive in the most difficult conditions. However, such success is due, first of all, to the structure of the body (the presence of sensory organs, numerous stigmas, thanks to which the whole body can breathe, etc.). In addition, instincts predominate in pests, and they also take information from each other with the help of an odorous secretion.”
How long does a cockroach live without food?
The first thing that interests housewives is how long domestic red cockroaches live without food. Since arthropod pests are cold-blooded creatures, they do not require energy to maintain an acceptable body temperature. Insects have a slower metabolism. In order for Prussians to remain active for 14 days, they need to consume the food once. Without food, red and black longhorned beetles live for 35–70 days (it all depends on the species). Therefore, it is possible to determine how long a domestic cockroach lives without food by taking into account the species.
When determining how long cockroaches live without food, the temperature regime is also taken into account. If this indicator is relatively low, then the number of insects is significantly reduced. Having figured out how long a cockroach can live without food, housewives understand how important it is to remove crumbs and organic debris from the table and trash can.
