Why Can’t You Crush a Cockroach?
WouterCockroaches are extremely tough and can survive up to 157,500 pounds of pressure. This makes them one of the few animals capable of surviving a nuclear holocaust. Despite their size, they are resistant to most kinds of crush damage. Crushing them will only stun them and cause them to defecate. The resulting feces will be small brown specks, similar to coffee grounds.
Fortunately for us, cockroaches are quite good runners. They can even survive getting their head crushed. This new research reveals how they do this, and could help us build better robots to perform similar tasks. The researchers put cockroaches through an obstacle course of tunnels and filmed their movements using high-speed cameras. Next, they crushed them with varying amounts of weight to see how well they could stand up.
Cockroaches have a hard exoskeleton, which makes them extremely resistant to crushing. If you do crush a cockroach, it will likely survive but you will probably be left with a body full of mucus. If you crush a roach with barefoot, you will likely cause a crack in its exoskeleton, which can cause serious skin damage to your feet.
Cockroaches can survive on very little food, and because they breed constantly, they are not noticeable until the infestation gets out of control. Luckily, there are effective solutions to the problem of cockroach infestation. The best way to eliminate a cockroach infestation is to keep your house clean and remove their sources of water and food. This method is not only more effective than cockroach crushing, but is also much more humane.
