What would happen if cockroaches didn’t exist?

It’s a busy summer in the northern hemisphere cockroaches. Moreover, experts have already warned that many of them are becoming resistant to insecticides, therefore it will become increasingly difficult to put an end to them. This is a shame for all those people whose dream would be like this. cockroaches didn’t exist. Who wants an animal that everyone hates and that doesn’t seem to provide any social benefit? Even though bees sting, they help with pollination, right?

Well, in principle, this may be an adequate prerequisite. But the truth is that she is very wrong. If there were no cockroaches, food chain She would look very offended. The populations of many species will decline, some will go extinct, and yes, humans will suffer the consequences.

Although it doesn’t seem like it to us, we need cockroaches. The good part is that they are like that stable that the fact of their cessation is unlikely to be anything more than a dream. While climate change, deforestation and many other factors are wiping out many species, cockroaches have roamed freely for at least 300 million years without seeing their population decline significantly, despite having plenty of predators and a guaranteed hatred of humans. These are strong animals, and it will not be easy to kill them. But anyway, let’s see what would happen if cockroaches didn’t exist.

Are they dangerous?

Before talking about what would happen if cockroaches did not exist, it is worth commenting on whether they are dangerous. It is assumed that there are from 5000 to 10000 species these insects, but we will focus on the ones that commonly find their way into our homes.

The truth is that we hate these cockroaches because they disgust us, but not so much because they pose a possible threat. danger to our health. The reality is that they are not direct, but they can be indirect.

Cockroaches love to eat everything from feces to dead animals. For this reason, they quite often have a variety of things built into their legs and the rest of their body. microorganisms which they can then leave on our food if they walk over it. This is a real lottery. This is not the case for some mosquitoes, which transmit very specific pathogens. Cockroaches can carry anything, harmless or harmful.

This is why it is important to keep them away from our food. If we see that they got into the cupboard where we had food, it would be better for us to throw it away. But other than that, they are not very dangerous. There are many other, more dangerous animals that we are not so afraid of.

The domino effect that would start if cockroaches didn’t exist.

If cockroaches did not exist, the first people to suffer from them would be their inhabitants. predators. As explained Living Science cockroach expert Srini Kambhampathi, there are no species that feed exclusively on these insects. Therefore, they will not go extinct directly, but their population will decrease significantly. Among the affected animals, first of all will be some birds and small mammals such as mice and rats. Yes, the species may become extinct. parasitic wasp which must be injected into cockroach eggs for reproduction.

This is where the domino effect begins. Let’s see what happens if the mouse population decreases. We may think that there is no problem. Another controlled pest. But no, mice are much more than a pest.

If these rodents decrease their population, it will affect the populations of the animals that feed on them. This includes cats, coyotes, wolves, reptiles and birds of preyamong other species. But that is not all. Mice eat mainly fruits, seeds and insects.

When they eat fruits, they help disperse their seeds, and many of the insects they feed on cause pests. Therefore, if cockroaches did not exist, there would be fewer mice and, as a result, more pests and worse seed propagation. Our crops They will look very offended.

The forest needs them too

Cockroaches eat almost everything. They are not very picky when choosing food. But above all, they eat decaying organic matter. It has a large number nitrogen which enters the digestive system of insects and then returns to the soil through your feces. This is part of the so-called nitrogen cycle, which is very important for both forests, jungles and crops, since plants use this nitrogen as a nutrient.

If cockroaches did not exist, the nitrogen cycle would be severely affected, as would humans. We hate them, but at the same time we need them. In any case, we can be “calm.” Cockroaches most likely outlive us all.