Roaches Kick Wasps in the Head to Avoid Becoming Zombies

By Mindy Weisberger, Senior Writer | October 31, 2018 12:18pm ET

A wasp that preys on cockroaches turns them into mind-controlled zombies by stinging them in the brain, and roaches were thought to be all but defenseless against this zombifying attack.

But it turns out that cockroaches have a defensive move that can protect them from becoming members of the walking dead.

Scientists recently discovered that roaches lash out at their would-be zombie-makers with powerful karate-like kicks to the attacking insect's head. Their strategy doesn't kill the wasp, but it's usually enough to send them looking for an easier victim, according to a new study. [Zombie Animals: 5 Real-Life Cases of Body-Snatching]

Zombification in this wasp-cockroach scenario is a little different than that suffered by human zombies in pop culture. The human "undead condition" usually seems to spread through bites; as in certain contagious diseases, an infusion of tainted bodily fluid passes on the "infection," turning the victim into an animated corpse with a taste for brains

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Cockroaches' DNA reveals why they thrive in filthy places

By identifying which genes are key to the bugs’ survival, scientists hope to find ways to better control them

Ian SampleScience editor

Tue 20 Mar 2018 16.00 GMTLast modified on Tue 20 Mar 2018 16.01 GMT

The secrets of the cockroach’s ability to thrive in some of the most disgusting places on Earth have been discovered in its DNA.

The American cockroach spread around the world after it was introduced to the US from Africa in the early 16th century. Its population exploded as the insects made themselves at home in the dark and moist corners of houses, restaurants and offices, where toilets and kitchens became their favourite haunts.

To understand how the species, which can grow to 5cm long, came to succeed in such filthy and unsanitary nooks and crannies, Chinese scientists deciphered the entire genetic makeup of the American cockroach, Periplaneta americana. They found that the species has more than 20,000 genes, making its genetic code as large as a human’s.

Amid the sequenced DNA, Shuai Zhan, who worked on the project at the Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology in Shanghai, spotted unusually large groups of genes that appear to help the American cockroach survive in the unenviable niches it has adapted to.

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Flying Cockroaches! Heat Sends Your Favorite Pests Soaring

By Taylor Kubota, Live Science Contributor | August 17, 2016 07:20am ET

Summer weather can make for hot, sticky and uncomfortable days. And if staying cool and keeping hydrated aren't enough to worry about, heat waves could cause cockroaches to take to the skies. Yes, you read that right. Flying cockroaches.

"Cockroaches, like all insects, are cold-blooded, meaning their activity rate increases with temperature," said Jules Silverman, an entomologist and professor at North Carolina State University, in an interview with Live Science. (Cold-blooded creatures are ectothermic, which means they depend on external heat to keep their bodies warm.)

This also means that the species of cockroach that are able to fly (and most of them are capable) are probably more likely to do so in warmer places, said Silverman.

If you think that flying cockroaches are especially horrific, you probably live somewhere with a colder climate and a denser human population. Flying cockroaches in the subways of New York have garnered some headlines, but "flight of the cockroach" is not so common up north, said Michael Bentley, staff entomologist for the National Pest Management Association. People in the southern states are likely to miss what all of the fuss is about. "Down in Florida, they fly a lot more," Bentley told Live Science. "They have to cover a greater distance to find food."

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Gross: cockroaches have individual personalities, study says

Chuck Bednar for redOrbit.com – @BednarChuck

Perhaps best known as a massive pest and the only creature able to survive a nuclear apocalypse (in popular theory, at least), cockroaches also apparently have individual personalities, according to new research published recently in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

In fact, according to Reuters, the Belgium research team responsible for the study found that the cockroach even displays different character traits – they can be shy and timid, or brave and eager to explore their surroundings. The discovery could help explain why the insects are considered to be such great survivors and so able to adapt to even the most inhospitable environments.

The buggy experiment

The researchers reviewed the behavior of American cockroaches (Periplaneta americana) when they were exposed to light. Sixteen cockroaches were tested in a round arena located underneath a bright light at various times over a three-month span. In the arena’s center was a pair of round shelter areas that the dark-loving insects to go to in order to seek refuge from the light.

Once they were released, the bugs were left along for a period of three hours, during which time their locations were recorded by a camera and a tiny chip that had been placed on their backs. This system allowed the scientists to monitor their location using a computer to determine if the insects were hiding from the light or exploring their surroundings.

Read more at

Zoo offers creepy way for lovelorn to get even with exes

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Feeling the sting of rejection? Itching to get even with an ex? The San Francisco Zoo is offering the burned and spurned masses the chance to "adopt" a hissing cockroach or giant scorpion in honor of their special ex-someone for Valentine's Day.

The zoo is highlighting two of its less-desirable inhabitants through the adopt-an-animal program that is usually used to raise money for the care of more cuddly or attractive creatures, such as penguins, lions and pandas. It has a Valentine's special comparing the creepy characteristics of Madagascar hissing cockroaches and the giant hairy scorpions native to the Southwest U.S. to the ways of heart-breaking mammals with two legs.

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Creepy Cockroaches Could Be Search And Rescue Heroes

John Hopton for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online

Researchers from North Carolina State University (NCSU) have found a way to turn cockroaches into cyborgs and have them assist in search and rescue operations after major disasters. By wearing special backpacks, the “biobots” can detect and locate sound, as well as differentiating between important and unimportant sounds.

The scientists came up with two innovations, both of which involve electronic backpacks which are equipped with microphones. One has a single microphone that can capture relatively high-resolution sound from any direction which can then be wirelessly transmitted to first responders. The other involves an array of three-directional microphones which can detect the direction of the sound. The team also developed algorithms that can analyze sound from the microphone array to focus the source and steer the biobot in the right direction.

The microphone array system worked successfully in laboratory testing, as shown in a video below.

Read more at

Potent spider toxin 'electrocutes' German, not American, cockroaches

Date:

July 11, 2014

Source:

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Summary:

Using spider toxins to study the proteins that let nerve cells send out electrical signals, researchers say they have stumbled upon a biological tactic that may offer a new way to protect crops from insect plagues in a safe and environmentally responsible way.

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Cats are cute… but could we learn to love the cockroach?

They are the subject of nightmares and I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! trials, but what is it about the cockroach that inspires katsaridaphobia (that’s the fear of them) even in Olympians? When they are not crawling up Fatima Whitbread’s nasal passage, is there really anything to fear?

‘People have a natural aversion to insects and other creatures living uninvited in their houses,’ said Dr George Beccaloni, a curator of cockroaches and related insects at the Natural History Museum and author of Big Bugs Life-size. ‘Pest cockroaches attack food and can spread diseases by carrying bacteria accidentally from one place to another on their bodies,’ he added. ‘I love cockroaches but would not like them to be “free range” in my house.’

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Cockroach farming is a booming business in China

In recent years, people around the world have spent nearly $40 billion annually on pesticides. And there may be no other insect that bothers the average person more than the cockroach.

But a few Chinese farmers have taken a radically different approach: cultivating millions of cockroaches as part of a profitable business venture. As the Los Angeles Times reports, there are about 100 farms in China, raising more than 10 million cockroaches.

Because the unusual industry is largely unregulated, most cockroach farmers operate somewhat under the radar. They say the Chinese government is aware of their existence and is allowing them to operate freely as long as they don’t become high profile. In other words, they don’t want millions of cockroaches to suddenly flee from local farm, as actually happened in what spectators called “The Great Escape” in August.

Why would someone want to farm cockroaches, an insect that is considered an insufferable pest in most corners of the world?

As it turns out, there’s much more demand for the little critters than some would like to admit. For example, cosmetic companies reportedly use them as a source of protein and for a “cellulose-like substance” on their wings, according to the Times.

And in May, the United Nations itself encouraged more people to consume insects for food, saying they are an inexpensive source of protein and could be a viable solution to world hunger.

Read on

One million cockroaches on the loose after breaking out of farm

Having one or two cockroaches inside your house is annoying enough but try having to contend with the million roaches which have reportedly escaped from a farm in China.

The insects, which were going to be used for traditional medicine, are thought to have absconded from an institution in Dafeng.

They are now reportedly nesting in cornfields that surround the farm in the city located in the eastern province of Jiangsu.

The pests are thought to have got loose after an unidentified person destroyed part of the greenhouse they were being kept in.

Wang Pengsheng, who owns the farm, could now lose tens of thousands of pounds after spending half a year mastering his business plan.

Chinese authorities have not yet figured out how they’re going to deal with the large number of escaped cockroaches, but five investigators have been sent to the location to formulate a plan.

http://metro.co.uk/2013/08/26/one-million-cockroaches-on-the-loose-after-breaking-out-of-farm-3937780/

Cockroaches lose their 'sweet tooth' to evade traps

A strain of cockroaches in Europe has evolved to outsmart the sugar traps used to eradicate them.

American scientists found that the mutant cockroaches had a "reorganised" sense of taste, making them perceive the glucose used to coat poisoned bait not as sweet but rather as bitter.

A North Carolina State University team tested the theory by giving cockroaches a choice of jam or peanut butter.

They then analysed the insects' taste receptors, similar to our taste buds.

Researchers from the same team first noticed 20 years ago that some pest controllers were failing to eradicate cockroaches from properties, because the insects were simply refusing to eat the bait.

Dr Coby Schal explained in the journal Science that this new study had revealed the "neural mechanism" behind this refusal.

Read more

Giant Cockroach Genus Pseudophoraspis Expands to the North With 3 New Species

Feb. 28, 2013 — Cockroaches (Blattodea) are an insect order remarkable in their biodiversity and distribution, with more than 4500 species known and great geographical reach. Cockroach fossils date back around 400 million years, which testifies to their great adaptability and endurance that puts them among the planet's great survivors.

The cockroach genus Pseudophoraspism has has been reported from China for the first time thanks to the discovery of three new species: Pseudophoraspis clavellata, Pseudophoraspis recurvata and Pseudophoraspis incurvata, alongside the first regional record of three already described ones. They belong to the cockroach family Blaberidae, known also as giant cockroaches. The study was published in the open access journal ZooKeys.

This image shows the back and front of
Pseudophoraspis recurvata,
one of the newly described species.
(Credit: Dr. Zongqing Wang/CC-BY 3.0)

Although the adults of the newly described species can reach a size of around 3 cm in length, they are still some of the smallest representatives in the family. For comparison, the females of the largest species known, Blaberus giganteus, can reach up to 10 cm in length. The heaviest species, Macropanesthia rhinoceros, also known as the rhinoceros cockroach, reaches only around 8 cm but can weigh remarkable 35 grams.

Continued:http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228103438.htm

Running Cockroaches Give Robotics A Fast Track To Success

[WATCH VIDEO: From Running Roaches To Robots]

April Flowers for redOrbit – Your Universe Online

Researchers from the University of Michigan have found that running cockroaches begin to recover from being pushed sideways even before their nervous systems kick in to tell their legs what to do. The research team hopes that these new insights on the stabilization of biological systems could one day help engineers design steadier robots. The findings, published online in Biological Cybernetics, might also improve doctors’ understanding of human gait abnormalities.

The roaches being tested were able to maintain their footing mechanically by using their momentum and the spring-like architecture of their legs, rather than neurologically by relying on impulses sent from their central nervous system to their muscles.

“The response time we observed is more than three times longer than you’d expect,” said Shai Revzen, an assistant professor of electrical engineering and computer science, as well as ecology and evolutionary biology, at the University of Michigan.

“What we see is that the animals’ nervous system is working at a substantial delay,” he said in a statement. “It could potentially act a lot sooner, within about a thirtieth of a second, but instead, it kicks in after about a step and a half or two steps—about a tenth of a second. For some reason, the nervous system is waiting and seeing how it shapes out.”

The research team sent 15 cockroaches running across a small bridge onto a placemat-sized cart on wheels. The roaches were sent one at a time, for a total of 41 trials. The cart was attached to an elastic cord, pulled tight like a loaded slingshot. This was held in place by a strong magnet on the other side. The researchers released the magnet once the roach was approximately one body length onto the cart. The force of the cart’s movement is equivalent to a sumo wrestler hitting a jogger in a flying tackle. Revzen said that cockroaches are much more stable than humans.

Read on:  http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1112789974/robotics-ideas-from-running-cockroaches-022313/

Insects groom to improve sense of smell

By Ella Davies, Reporter, BBC Nature

Cockroaches groom to improve their sense of smell, scientists say.

The insects are known to manipulate their antennae, the protrusions on their head which they use to sense the smells, temperature and physical layout of their environment.

US researchers found that the cockroaches groom to wipe away secretions that would otherwise interfere with their sense of smell.

They also identified the same behaviour in carpenter ants and houseflies.

The findings are published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

"The insect antenna is full of sensory structures, called sensilla, used by insects to gather information about their surroundings, which is essential for their survival," said Dr Katalin Boroczky from the North Carolina State University, US, who authored the study.

Continued:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/21275518

Baby Wasps Disinfect Cockroaches Before Eating Them

If cockroaches had nightmares, the emerald cockroach wasp surely would deserve a prominent place therein.

These colorful, tiny parasitic wasps sting American cockroaches twice, once in the midsection to prevent them from running away, and a second time directly in the brain, to make the insects sluggish and zombielike. The wasps then drag the roaches by their antenna, akin to a human pulling a dog on a leash, into a protected nook and lay an egg on the roach. The egg ultimately hatches into larvae that devour the roach from the inside out.

About six weeks later, a young adult wasp emerges after spinning a cocoon inside the shell of the roach. But there's a catch: What's to prevent the cockroach "meat" from spoiling? Cockroaches are notoriously dirty animals, covered in bacteria that begin to spoil their flesh — and threaten to harm larval wasps — during this long incubation period.

Continued: http://www.livescience.com/26035-wasps-disinfect-cockroaches.html

Man Dies After Winning Roach-Eating Contest

The winner of a cockroach-eating contest in South Florida died shortly after downing dozens of the live bugs as well as worms.

About 30 contestants ate the insects during Friday night's contest at Ben Siegel Reptile Store in Deerfield Beach, about 40 miles north of Miami. The grand prize was a python.

Edward Archbold, 32, became ill shortly after the competition ended and collapsed in front of the shop, according to a Broward Sheriff's Office statement released on Monday.

He was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead. Authorities are waiting for results of a post-mortem to determine a cause of death.

"Unless the roaches were contaminated with some bacteria or other pathogens, I don't think that cockroaches would be unsafe to eat," said Michael Adams, professor of entomology at the University of California.

"Some people do have allergies to roaches but there are no toxins in roaches or related insects."

None of the other contestants became ill, the sheriff's office said.

Continued:  http://uk.news.yahoo.com/man-dies-winning-roach-eating-contest-001751492.html

What If There Were No Cockroaches?

In this weekly series, Life's Little Mysteries provides expert answers to challenging questions.

The sight of a cockroach makes just about every American shudder. We fear a roach infestation inside the walls. We fear that our house is dirty enough to sustain them. We fear that a cockroach might scurry across our faces at night, or, under cover of darkness, eat flecks of toothpaste off our toothbrushes.

These fears drive us to kill, kill, kill, and wish death upon the whole genus. But what if — through some means more effective than a nuclear bomb — cockroaches really were wiped out? Could we then rest easy? Or do we, in fact, somehow need these monstrous vermin?

We put the question to Srini Kambhampati, professor and chair of the biology department at theUniversity of Texas at Tyler, and a world expert on cockroaches. Turns out, the sudden disappearance of Earth's 5,000 to 10,000 cockroach species would have ramifications far beyond your filthy apartment. 

Worldwide, the insects are a significant food source for many birds and small insectivorous mammals, such as mice and rats. (Even humans eat them in some parts of the world.) None of these animals rely solely on cockroaches for food, Kambhampati said, so they probably wouldn't go extinct, but their numbers would drop. Parasitic wasps, which specialize in parasitizing cockroach eggs, do rely entirely on the cockroach. "These would almost certainly become extinct," Kambhampati told Life's Little Mysteries.

If you can't get very worked up about a dent in the rat population or the extinction of something called a parasitic wasp, consider this: A dearth of mice and rats would, in turn, impact the species that prey on them, including cats (both wild and domestic), coyotes, wolves and many reptiles, as well as eagles and other birds of prey. Many of those animals, we're quite fond of.

Continued:  http://news.yahoo.com/were-no-cockroaches-213702038.html%3b_ylt=Amj790LuQDf9QFFzcFv2dV94hMgF%3b_ylu=X3oDMTNqNjZ1azVyBGNjb2RlA2N0LmMEcGtnA2ZhNDk5MzViLTQxMzAtMzdiYS1hYjNiLWMxNDg0YzBiZjNhMgRwb3MDNwRzZWMDbW9zdF9wb3B1bGFyBHZlcgNmMDk5NzgxMS1iYjIxLTExZTEtYmU3Zi03NDRiZGY5MTg0ZTY-%3b_ylg=X3oDMTI0MmNvNGRoBGludGwDdXMEbGFuZwNlbi11cwRwc3RhaWQDBHBzdGNhdANzY2llbmNlfGFuaW1hbHNhbmRwZXRzBHB0A3NlY3Rpb25z%3b_ylv=3

Stealth Behavior Allows Cockroaches to Seemingly Vanish

ScienceDaily (June 6, 2012) — New cockroach behavior discovered by University of California, Berkeley, biologists secures the insect's reputation as one of nature's top escape artists, able to skitter away and disappear from sight before any human can swat it.

In addition to its lightning speed, quick maneuvers and ability to squeeze through the tiniest cracks, the cockroach also can flip under a ledge and disappear in the blink of an eye, the researchers found. It does this by grabbing the edge with grappling hook-like claws on its back legs and swinging like a pendulum 180 degrees to land firmly underneath, upside down.

Always eager to mimic animal behaviors in robots, the researchers teamed up with UC Berkeley robotics experts to recreate the behavior in a six-legged robot by adding Velcro strips.

The UC Berkeley team published the results of the study on June 6, in the online, open-access journal PLoS ONE.

Continued:  http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/06/120606193851.htm

Cockroach Cyborgs Get Their Own Power Source

Equipped with tiny sensors, insects could scout out buildings filled with noxious chemicals, check under rubble after an earthquake and go places no human spy ever could. In a first step toward making these technologically enhanced insects a reality, scientists have devised a way to power bug-robot hybrids by tapping into their own metabolism. The secret: an implantable biofuel cell powered by a sugar the cockroaches make from their food. The device doesn't appear to harm the insect either.

Neurobiologists on the team implanted the tiny device into the abdomens of five immobilized cockroaches independently, measured the power it produced and removed it. The cockroaches appeared to behave normally afterward, said Daniel Scherson, the senior researcher and a professor of chemistry at Case Western Reserve University. Although the device converted the sugar into energy slowly, the electricity it generated could be stored in a battery and used in bursts, Scherson said.

Continued: http://www.livescience.com/17956-insect-cyborg-biofuel-cell.html

Cockroach Hookup Signal Could Benefit Endangered Woodpecker

ScienceDaily (Dec. 19, 2011) — A North Carolina State University discovery of the unique chemical composition of a cockroach signal -- a "Let's hook up" sex pheromone emitted by certain female wood cockroaches to entice potential mates -- could have far-ranging benefits, including improved conservation of an endangered woodpecker.

Dr. Coby Schal, Blanton J. Whitmire Professor of Entomology at NC State and the corresponding author of a paper describing the discovery, says that the study, published the week of Dec. 19 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, advances the knowledge of fundamental biological and chemical properties of an important North American cockroach genus that serves as both a beneficial forest insect and as a pest in homes.

Parcoblatta lata is the largest and most abundant of the wood cockroaches. It also serves as the favored meal of the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker. Schal says that the study, which characterized the pheromone and produced a synthetic version of it, could help scientists determine whether certain habitats have enough woodpecker food. If the synthetic pheromone attracts large numbers of adult male P. lata cockroaches, Schal says, then the roach supply is probably ample. Provided that other aspects of the habitat are also right, the area could be a suitable home for red-cockaded woodpeckers.

Read more at:  http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111219152516.htm