Know Your Enemy
Accurate identification of pests is as important as choosing the best preventive pest management available on the market today. Preventive Pest Control has compiled a list of most common pests to help you identify the problem.
Leaproach
(Saltoblattella montistabularis)
Characteristics
The leaproach is the only cockroach in the world that has the ability to jump long distances. It is 1/4 to 2/5 inch long, light brown color and pale stripes below the sides of its body. It has some similarities with a grasshopper because the hind legs are thick and large, and are sticking out at the sides. It also has an antennae and eyes that are round and large.
Habitat
This cockroach lives in a protected area in the Table Mountain National Park in Africa, and can be observed jumping from stem to stem on plants. They are found in high altitude mountainous areas with heathland vegetation.
Behavior
This South African cockroach gets its name through its ability to leap great distances. It has the ability to leap nearly 50 times its body length in each hop. To leap from one place to the next, the leaproach will use its legs just like how grasshoppers do. However, the leap of this insect is far better and farther than a grasshopper as it can jump forward 50 body lengths compared to the grasshoppers 20 body lengths.
They are always moving and jumping. However, these roaches cannot fly and do not have functional wings.
Food
These cockroaches can feed on a variety of plants, especially those in captivity. They have also been observed to prefer grasshoppers droppings.
Life Cycle
Once the female roach mate with a male, and produces eggs, she will protect her eggs by creating a case. She will carry this case for a while until the outer case hardens. After that, she will drop the egg case on the ground. The nymphs will come out on their own and will search for their own food just like their mother. The leaproach lives together with grasshoppers and other insects that prefer plants and other insects as food.
Other Information and Tips
The leaproach is the only known cockroach of its kind, which makes it a special cockroach. Researchers are still studying this amazing cockroach and how it is able to jump great distances.
Photo: Saltoblattella montistabularis_male_Mike Picker by OggiScienza, used under CC BY-ND 2.0 / resized from original