The Uninvited

Horrors.  Many people in Martinborough are bemoaning the fact that several unwanted guests have decided that now, with the cooler autumnal evenings drawing in, it is time to move. 

They are discovered in the most unlikely places.  Take a towel off the heated towel rail, look up at the ceiling, open a drawer and there immobile lies a cockroach. But not so immobile because the moment you move, it takes off at an exceedingly fast pace. And then there is a scurried race to capture it before it finds a safe haven.

It is believed that cockroaches originated more than 280 million years in the Carboniferous era. They are survivors and have evolved into one of the most adaptable pests on earth.  In fact, so much so, that there are now approximately 4,000 living species in the world. 

Some Crazy Facts about Cockroaches

A cockroach can live almost a month without food and two weeks without water.

• Some female cockroaches only mate once and stay pregnant for life!
• A cockroach can live for up to one week without its head!
  Due to their open circulatory system and the fact that they breathe through little holes in each of their body segments they are not dependent on the mouth or head to breathe. The cockroach only dies because, without a mouth, it cannot drink water and therefore dies of thirst.
• Cockroaches can hold their breath for up to 40 minutes!
• Cockroaches can run up to 3 miles an hour and a one-day old cockroach can run almost as fast as its parents.
• Females have an estimated adult lifespan of 180 days, while males have an adult lifespan of about 160 days.

There are many myths and tips on how to remove the wee beasties. 

Sugar and Baking Soda is a nice home strategy. The sugar attracts cockroaches and then the Baking Soda destroys their digestive system.

Insecticides such as Boric Acid work best when applied to areas where cockroaches hide during the day or pass through at night. This generally takes 3 days to work.

Lavender, lemon citrus, eucalyptus and white vinegar will deter cockroaches but will not kill them.

Do not step on a cockroach. This won’t spread their eggs, but it may bring others out to feed. Cockroaches do have cannibalistic tendencies.

And of course you can buy fumigation, traps and gel bait from P&K Mitre 10 

Lyle Griffiths