Cockroaches are among the most resilient insects in the world, and being decapitated isn’t going to stop them from challenging the boundaries of science.Human beings should be envious of their resistance because cockroaches are also known to survive various life-threatening disasters, including radiation exposure. A cockroach’s will to live through difficult times is quite motivating, but being able to live without a head almost makes them seem invincible!Of course, we have no idea who took the time to test out decapitation on roaches to see whether they will survive or not, but it seems to have stemmed from experiments conducted 50 years ago by a neurobiologist, George Adrian Horridge. With time, various scientists conducted a plethora of further studies to understand the functions of a cockroach’s body, which is why we now have an explanation about the behavior of a cockroach even without its head!If you enjoy reading about animal survival facts, you may want to learn how long a bearded dragon can go without eating and how long a fish can live out of water with some related articles here at Kidadl.Why don’t headless cockroaches suffocate?Cockroaches can survive when they are headless for up to three weeks. They do not suffocate in the case of decapitation because they can still breathe without a head or nose. Similarly, if you’re wondering about their brains, cockroaches have two brains, one in their head and the other in their abdomen. This is why they can do without their heads. Let’s find out the science behind a cockroach’s body, including its entire vascular system, which is far from the high-pressure circulatory system found in a human.Cockroaches and most insects do not need a nose to breathe. Instead, they use little holes present along each body segment on their abdomen, which lead into tubes inside their body called spiracles. Therefore, the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide in roaches takes place through the body rather than the head. This is possible because each body segment of a cockroach has a cluster of nerve tissues called ganglia which can perform basic functions.Similarly, they do not require a response from any nerve tissue to control their breathing, and neither does their blood carry oxygen, which means they are cold-blooded and won’t suffocate in the case of restricted blood flow. So, where being able to breathe is concerned, spiracles are the main organs in action, not their heads.Can headless cockroaches eat or drink?In simple words, no, cockroaches cannot eat food or drink water in a headless state, and a lack thereof is usually why their bodies give up and die. The absence of a mouth and not being able to nourish their body is the actual cause of death in a cockroach, not decapitation. So, let’s take a look at the science of what happens in their body.Dehydration is said to kill headless cockroaches more than food deprivation. The body of cockroaches highly depends on water intake, and they tend to lose this water easily through excretion, gas exchange, and the maintenance of their exoskeleton. In contrast, a cockroach can survive for more than a month without food, but starvation will eventually catch up to their body. Similarly, it’s often understood that cockroaches die when they fall on their back. This is simply because cockroaches have a high center of gravity and cannot tilt themselves back, which also means that they eventually die from starvation and dehydration.Considering they have no heads, drinking water, as well as eating, requires a mouth. Thus, they cannot do both. Some studies have also proven that a female cockroach is more likely to live longer with no head than a male simply because she has more fat stored in her body.Do headless cockroaches bleed?Unlike the high-pressure circulatory system in humans, a cockroach uses quite a different method, with its vascular system carrying blood throughout its body, which is why it will not die from blood loss. So, why do they not die despite the bleeding that is observed?Humans die from excessive bleeding because of tiny blood vessels which require high pressure to pump blood. On the contrary, although a cockroach is tiny, its blood vessels are comparatively large, which means that blood can be circulated through a low-pressure flow. As a result, bleeding is quite slow, and before a cockroach loses too much blood, the decapitation site will clot and seal off.How can a headless cockroach survive?There is quite an intricate explanation that science has to offer about cockroaches surviving with no heads. Although they are simple creatures, they have quite an intriguing anatomy that can control how, when, and why they can survive without their entire head!Although the absence of a mouth and no food or water intake is what eventually leads to the death of a headless cockroach, the real question is what helps it survive. Just like humans, the body of a cockroach also has stored fat, and when it is unable to consume food, it can just convert these fats and use them as energy to survive. Under monitored conditions, this process alone can help this insect to live for at least a month. However, a headless cockroach in the normal world has a lower survival rate, simply because of other environmental factors such as predators or the fact that it doesn’t know where it is going, which can lead to its death.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for ‘How long can a roach live without its head?’ then why not take a look at ‘How long can a chicken live without a head?’ or ‘Cockroach facts’?
Cockroaches are among the most resilient insects in the world, and being decapitated isn’t going to stop them from challenging the boundaries of science.
