Madagascar Hissing Cockroach
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Physical Description
Madagascar hissing cockroaches are large, wingless insects with a dark brown exoskeleton and orange markings on their abdomen. Males have large bumps or horns behind their head while females have smaller bumps. Like most cockroaches, they are nocturnal insects, hiding under debris or in tree bark during the day. Madagascar hissing cockroaches consume rotting plants, fallen fruit, and decaying animal matter on the forest floor. Females hatch 15–40 baby cockroaches, called nymphs, from eggs stored inside their body. The nymphs undergo approximately six molts before reaching maturity after about seven months.
Interesting Fact 1
Madagascar hissing cockroaches reach up to three inches long and are some of the largest cockroaches in the world.
Interesting Fact 2
Unique breathing holes allow them to produce a loud, snake-like hiss to startle predators, such as birds and mammals.
Interesting Fact 3
They use the large bumps behind their head as battering rams to fight other cockroaches.
Species Survival Plan®
We cooperate with other members of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums to manage the zoo population of this species through a Species Survival Plan®.
Commitment to Care
Lincoln Park Zoo prioritizes individual well-being over everything else. Guided by scientific research, staff and volunteers work to provide the best welfare outcomes for each individual in the zoo’s care.
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Wish List
The Wish List is full of one-of-a-kind items for the zoo’s animals, including nutritious snacks and enrichment items to keep them active and healthy.
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Wildlife face many daunting challenges—some global, like planet-wide climate change, and some that affect individuals, like an animal ingesting plastic—but now is not the time to despair. None of these problems are too big for us to come together and solve.
