How Long Can Cockroaches Live in the Cold?
WouterWhen temperatures drop below 40 degrees Fahrenheit, cockroaches move inside to warmer places. This changes their behavior; they may become more active in late fall or winter. They slow down their metabolism to conserve energy. However, if provided with a warm home and plenty of food, cockroaches can survive in the cold for many months.
The roaches that survive the cold will conserve energy and spend much of their time searching for a warm place to live. This is one of the methods used by pest controllers to kill cockroaches. This method does not work well for large infestations, however. If the roaches don’t find a warm place to live, they will freeze to death in just a few hours.
Cockroaches live in almost every continent except Antarctica. While they can live in a variety of temperatures, they do not thrive in Antarctica due to the harsh winters and lack of warm hiding places. In most cases, cockroaches are more likely to find warm places to live in spring and summer months, when temperatures are higher.
While cockroaches cannot survive the cold in the open, they can survive in warm environments with the help of their hard exterior shell. They use this shell to absorb the moisture in the air. However, they cannot survive in extreme temperatures of over 120degF because it will dry up their organs and cause their metabolism to fail. In cold temperatures of less than 15degF, cockroaches will succumb to freezing and die.
