Pick up another pamphlet
From Create Your Own Story
You stand from your chair and walk to the shelf filled with pamphlets and pest statues. Another cockroach pamphlet titled "Cockroaches: Socialization and Reproduction" catches your eye. You take the pamphlet back to Jason's desk, sit back down in your chair, and begin reading.
Cockroaches are gregarious insects. Only two factors seem to affect where cockroaches gather: the presence of other cockroaches, or low light levels. Cockroaches will tolerate brighter environments if enough cockroaches have already gathered there. Cockroaches raised in seclusion exhibit depressive behavior. They eat less frequently than socialized cockroaches, and are less likely to mate.
Cockroaches also have diverse methods of communication. Often they gather where cockroach feces has accumulated- their waste contains attractive pheromones. Some cockroaches hiss or chirp as well.
Pheromones contribute also during mating, alerting cockroaches nearby of the readiness and gender of potential mates. Males also perform a courting ritual, where the cockroach stridulates, producing an attractive sound by rubbing certain body parts together.
When a male successfully courts a female mate, he secretes sperm through an aedeagus into the female's spermatheca where she stores it for later fertilization. The aedeagus, mostly hard and covered in hooks and flaps for grasping a female, is the insect equivalent to a mammal's penis. Sperm is secreted in globulous capsules rather than the free-flowing sperm of mammals.
Female American cockroaches hold onto eggs for about two days after fertilization. They then deposit the eggs in an ootheca (an egg-filled shell) near a potential food source for the hatchlings. Nymphs, or immature cockroaches, emerge around 7 weeks later. Cockroach nymphs resemble their adult counterparts except for undeveloped wings and genitalia. The nymphs grow to maturity in 6-12 months, after which they are able to reproduce.
Understanding the socialization habits and lifecycle of cockroaches allows pest-removal experts to more effectively treat infestations. Knowing where cockroaches are likely to gather saves our extraction team time, and the cockroach reproductive timeline helps us estimate how many treatments are needed. American cockroach infestations need at least two extractions- the first removes only currently mature cockroaches and some nymphs, and the second, around 8 months after, removes some recently hatched nymphs and any new mature adults. At least three treatments are recommended though, as the PestVac is less effective at removing nymphs.
Okay, that's enough reading for one day. You now know more about cockroaches than you ever wanted to.
You:
| Status | ||
| Health | Horny & Hormonal | Location: |
| MP | 0 | |
| Level | 1 | |
