# A Question I've Always Wanted To Ask...Insect survival in water **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 4, 2005, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071 "2005-09-04T18:05:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![grayeagle55](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@grayeagle55](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grayeagle55)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/1 "2005-09-04T18:05:54Z")
Hail The Master and the Teeming Masses. I seek wisdom. For years, my ex wife - a woman who, in physical appearance and personal impression resembled nothing so much as a 100-gun man-o-war - manifested a fear of only one thing on the planet: bugs. Beetles, moths, flies, ants and anything else absolutely terrified her, and as I was the Dutiful Husband, it was my job to kill the little so-and-sos, which I did, quite often by taking a kleenex or paper towel and just turning them into a small splotch of chitin and assorted fluids. Although a dislike/fear of insects is quite common, her demand to kill them was followed by another - that they had to be flushed down the toilet. Not stomped, not set afire, not run down the disposal, but flushed. And again, being a duitiful husband, I did it. Now, herein lies the question. Many many times, they were usually uninjured and quite healthy when flushed, and I have gotten to thinking: How long could they have survived down there? I would assume in a septic tank environment they probably might not last all that long at all, but in a sewer - especially a large city one - they might hold out for very nearly their natural lifespan. So - there is my question. I eagerly await enlightenment. ---
**Author:** ![Critical1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@Critical1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Critical1)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/2 "2005-09-04T18:26:15Z")
Dude I think your Ex is my new landlord…she hangs fly strips in random places **OUTDOORS!** sorry no real answer for you, but assuming they get someplace where they can get out of the water I imagine days or even weeks. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/3 "2005-09-04T18:28:17Z")
As I understand it, non-aquatic insects breathe air through pores in their exoskeleton. If immersed in liquid, they drown. I really doubt that many of the insects you flushed alive would have survived the trip through your home plumbing, much less the city sewage system. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/4 "2005-09-04T18:38:00Z")
I changed the title of the thread to be more descriptive. That means also that more people bother to read it. Win/win. **samclem** GQ moderator ---
**Author:** ![Muad\_Dib](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/35a633/32.png) [@Muad\_Dib](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muad_Dib)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/5 "2005-09-04T20:00:49Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > As I understand it, non-aquatic insects breathe air through pores in their exoskeleton. If immersed in liquid, they drown. I really doubt that many of the insects you flushed alive would have survived the trip through your home plumbing, much less the city sewage system. Not true. Although that is what everyone has believed since Aristotle first wrote the theory. A year or so ago, some scientists working with a highintensity x-ray machine found that all of the insects that they studied have a sort of half-lung. It would expand to suck in air, but rather than actively contracting, it would simply relax before sucking in more air. Also, I have heard commercials from Clarck Pest Control saying that ants can survive for days immersed in water. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/6 "2005-09-04T20:36:03Z")
All adult insects breathe through means of small openings along the side of the body called spiracles that allow air into the tracheal system which distributes it through the body. Some juvenile aquatic insects breathe by means of gills or other systems. Although they eventually need access to atmospheric air to breathe, insects don’t need all that much. They can survive on small amounts of air for a long time. Also, their exoskelton is made of chitin, which is not very wettable, so that they tend to float. I would guess that most insects could survive the passage through a sewage system until they reached a place where there was enough air for them to survive. However, they could not survive indefinite immersion. > [@Muad'Dib](#): > > A year or so ago, some scientists working with a highintensity x-ray machine found that all of the insects that they studied have a sort of half-lung. It would expand to suck in air, but rather than actively contracting, it would simply relax before sucking in more air. Cite? ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/7 "2005-09-04T20:45:41Z")
[I think this is the study](http://chronicle.uchicago.edu/030206/insects.shtml) that **Muad’Dib** is referring to. It does not contradict the well-established fact that air enters the insects’ bodies through the spiracles. You all know that old Jefferson Starship song, right? _If only you could breathe like flies can breathe, baby Through spiracles, we’d get by-y-y-y…_ ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/8 "2005-09-04T20:52:37Z")
> [@Biffy the Elephant Shrew](#): > > [I think this is the study](http://chronicle.uchicago.edu/030206/insects.shtml) that **Muad’Dib** is referring to. It does not contradict the well-established fact that air enters the insects’ bodies through the spiracles. Thanks. The study doesn’t indicate that insects “have a sort of half-lung,” merely that some of them use compression to help circulate air in the normal tracheal system, rather than relying on simple diffusion. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/9 "2005-09-04T21:10:25Z")
> [@grayeagle55](#): > > Beetles, moths, flies, ants and anything else absolutely terrified her, and as I was the Dutiful Husband, it was my job to kill the little so-and-sos, which I did, quite often by taking a kleenex or paper towel and just turning them into a small splotch of chitin and assorted fluids. > Although a dislike/fear of insects is quite common, her demand to kill them was followed by another - that they had to be flushed down the toilet. Not stomped, not set afire, not run down the disposal, but flushed. Mrs. Fear is the same way. Only if I am not around, she will take any aerosol product (hairspray, oven cleaner, spot remover, bathroom cleanser, or a combination of any of these) and spray the offending creepy-crawly until it is completely obscured. Out of sight, out of mind, until I can get rid of the resulting mound of congealed chemical goo from whatever wall, floor or ceiling the hapless insect was caught on. She was quite excited when I showed how to use canned air to freeze the little guys without leaving a mark on the wall. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/10 "2005-09-04T21:11:55Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > They can survive on small amounts of air for a long time. Also, their exoskelton is made of chitin, which is not very wettable, so that they tend to float. I would guess that most insects could survive the passage through a sewage system until they reached a place where there was enough air for them to survive. However, they could not survive indefinite immersion. So, should I look in the toilet before using? Just in case the last guy I flushed has revenge on his mind? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/11 "2005-09-04T22:20:49Z")
> [@samclem](#): > > So, should I look in the toilet before using? Just in case the last guy I flushed has revenge on his mind? 🙂 Are we still talking about insects? :dubious: I doubt that a roach is generally going to submerge itself in water unless it’s forced too, so generally the water in the bowl is going to be a barrier. ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2005, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/12 "2005-09-04T23:00:24Z")
> [@Fear Itself](#): > > Mrs. Fear is the same way. Only if I am not around, she will take any aerosol product (hairspray, oven cleaner, spot remover, bathroom cleanser, or a combination of any of these) and spray the offending creepy-crawly until it is completely obscured. Out of sight, out of mind, until I can get rid of the resulting mound of congealed chemical goo from whatever wall, floor or ceiling the hapless insect was caught on. She was quite excited when I showed how to use canned air to freeze the little guys without leaving a mark on the wall. Mrs. Fear is very [lucky](http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050902/od_nm/germany_spiders_dc). If she runs out of canned air, and reaches for some other spray can, tell her to take a sec, and make sure its not flamable. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2005, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/13 "2005-09-05T00:08:58Z")
> [@picunurse](#): > > Mrs. Fear is very [lucky](http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050902/od_nm/germany_spiders_dc). If she runs out of canned air, and reaches for some other spray can, tell her to take a sec, and make sure its not flamable. 🆒 Yeah, I warned her to put out her cigar first… ---
**Author:** ![Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/779978/32.png) [@Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amazon_Floozy_Goddess)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2005, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/14 "2005-09-05T01:39:53Z")
> [@Muad'Dib](#): > > Not true. > > Although that is what everyone has believed since Aristotle first wrote the theory. A year or so ago, some scientists working with a highintensity x-ray machine found that all of the insects that they studied have a sort of half-lung. It would expand to suck in air, but rather than actively contracting, it would simply relax before sucking in more air. > > Also, I have heard commercials from Clarck Pest Control saying that ants can survive for days immersed in water. They can. When I was a bored kid, I used to try to be heroic by taking drowned ants out of areas of standing water (bucket left outside, kiddie pools, etc). I discovered that if I gently blew air on them, sometimes they would come back to life. It took awhile, but sometimes an antennae would start twitching, then a leg, then another leg, then the ant would eventually stand up confusedly, clean itself and then stagger away. Lots of times these ants would have been immersed in water for a few days. ---
**Author:** ![davenportavenger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5f8ce5/32.png) [@davenportavenger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davenportavenger)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2005, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/15 "2005-09-05T01:55:07Z")
I think that the movement of the water would tear the insect limb from limb from limb (&etc), which makes the question of whether they’d survive once they’re down there irrelevant. The toilet bowl is the Charybdis of the insect world. ---
**Author:** ![Rikster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e9a140/32.png) [@Rikster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rikster)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2005, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/16 "2005-09-05T05:07:48Z")
Once they go through the dunking of being flushed your sewer line is mostly dry except when you flush even then it is only half full of water and other nasties. I’ve been in many manholes and or sewer lines with many insects enjoying the warm moist environment; with a smorgasbord of food floating by every few minutes. I am sure some die but otherwise it is an insect nirvana. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2005, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-ive-always-wanted-to-ask-insect-survival-in-water/320071/17 "2005-09-05T05:15:56Z")
> [@davenportavenger](#): > > I think that the movement of the water would tear the insect limb from limb from limb (&etc), which makes the question of whether they’d survive once they’re down there irrelevant. The toilet bowl is the Charybdis of the insect world. This is certainly not true. The water isn’t going anywhere near fast enough to exert enough force to tear apart most insects, which are fairly tough against that kind of stress.