#domino roach

Today's animal of the day is the Domino Cockroach (Therea petiveriana)!

Photo credit: Vijay Anand Ismavel

Also known as the seven-spotted cockroach, this species of cockroach is native to southern India and has a distinct black coloration with white spots, which makes it look like a domino. This coloration, along with their rounded body shape, is actually a form of bio-mimicry and causes predators to confuse these harmless roaches with the highly aggressive six-spot ground beetle, which can spray an irritating chemical concoction at would-be predators.

Photo credit: Hareesha A S

These flightless roaches live in semi-arid scrub forests and are most active at dawn and dusk. During the day, when it's the hottest out, they'll burrow under the leaf litter or some loose soil to help keep cool. Their heads are actually bent back underneath their pronotum, which is the piece of the exoskeleton right behind their head. This, combined with their eyes being placed more forward on the head compared to other roaches, allows them to have slightly better vision than other roaches. Because of this, they are able to see light better, which helps them to be able to tell what time it is. Well, at least if it is dawn, mid-day, dusk, or night.

Photo credit: Subramania Siva S

They are detritivores and feed mostly on fallen leaves and rotting wood. However, their stomach enzymes aren't actually strong enough to digest and extract nutrients from wood on their own. So, like termites, these roaches have special beneficial bacteria that live in their stomach and break down the wood they eat in order to make it easier to digest. While foraging for food, they use their long antennae to help locate food. Males also use their antennae to find females to mate with, and have slightly longer antennae to help show off to the ladies. When threatened, these roaches will actually warn each other by raising their wings and squirting out special pheromones made out of volatile chemicals from their abdomens. Other nearby roaches will smell the pheromones with their antennae and know to find someplace to hide.

Photo credit: Kartik Sundar

Because of their unique appearance and docile nature, domino roaches are actually quite commonly kept as pets. They do best in a 5-10 gallon enclosure with at least two or three inches of substrate for them burrow in. They're a bit picky about their humidity levels, and will need one side of the enclosure that's kept dry and the other that's kept pretty humid. They can be fed dried leaves with the occasional piece of dog, cat, or fish food to provide them with a source of protein.

Photo credit: Cassandra Crawford

While pretty in appearance the reasons for its pattern is to mimic the six spot ground beetle.

Whose known to use an acid like spray as defense.

(Source: reptile rapture)

Someone grew up! Look at these snazzy spots!

Shortly after I got CJ:

Me: I’ve been looking at other pet insects, too. Millipedes, beetles, roaches…

Mom: I draw the line at roaches.

Me: BugsInCyberspace has one called a domino roach? They’re actually… really cute.

Mom: If it’s roach shaped, it can’t be cute. And it won’t be coming into my house!

Me: *shows Domino roach*

Mom: … they look like little buttons on a fancy coat.

Cut to this morning, 2 1/2 months later:

Me: I could have gotten some domino roaches at the pet store last night, but I wasn’t sure if the impulse buy was such a good idea.

Mom: I simply wouldn’t have let you feed them to your mantises. They’re too cute for that.

Me: …I wanted them as a pet. Because they’re cute.

Mom: OH! Well, that would work just fine!