# Is there ANYTHING that eats roaches? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 19, 2011, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858 "2011-09-19T20:05:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sal\_Ammoniac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8dc957/32.png) [@Sal\_Ammoniac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sal_Ammoniac)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/21 "2011-09-20T00:41:39Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > Geckos. I’ve actually seen a gecko eat a roach. The roach was admittedly small. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/22 "2011-09-20T00:52:04Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > Um…when you catch a fish using traditional hook and line, the fish bites whatever you are using to conceal the hook, ie, the bait. I suppose on some planet a fish may bite something as an expression of solidarity with the universe, but here on Earth, fish bite things they are trying to eat. Ergo, I reason that fish will, in fact, eat roaches when such are available to be eaten. I think the point is that some animals will bite things that they don’t eat. Sharks, for example, will bite people, but they won’t eat people. Shiny metal lures, cockroaches on hooks, and people in wet-suits are not naturally occurring things that sea creatures actually want to eat–they just _think_ they want to eat them, but after they bite, the damage is already done. ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/23 "2011-09-20T01:11:48Z")
> [@Sal\_Ammoniac](#): > > I’ve actually seen a gecko eat a roach. The roach was admittedly small. Resulting in that rarest of events: an insurance pitchman performing a public service! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/24 "2011-09-20T01:16:00Z")
Aside from Geckos, there is a bird call “Cucarachero” (The cockroacher): _Troglodytes aedon_. ---
**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 20, 2011, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/25 "2011-09-20T01:17:49Z")
> [@sitchensis](#): > > Chickens, at least according to Bryce Courtenay and Grandpa Chook My brother has chickens and he confirms this. They will pounce on cockroaches in a heartbeat. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/26 "2011-09-20T01:18:57Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > I think the point is that some animals will bite things that they don’t eat. Sharks, for example, will bite people, but they won’t eat people. Shiny metal lures, cockroaches on hooks, and people in wet-suits are not naturally occurring things that sea creatures actually want to eat–they just _think_ they want to eat them, but after they bite, the damage is already done. Where are you getting this stuff? A shark won’t eat a human? Also, have you ever seen a bass or a pike hit a bug? It’s in one motion, not a series of nibbles. Even if the fish changed it’s mind, it would be too late. ---
**Author:** ![Long\_Time\_Lurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/2bfe46/32.png) [@Long\_Time\_Lurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Long_Time_Lurker)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/27 "2011-09-20T01:29:07Z")
> [@Frylock](#): > > How does a centipede catch anything? Here’s a giant one catching a bat: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UROVfmY3NTA](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UROVfmY3NTA) Do not underestimate the centipede! ---
**Author:** ![Kansas\_Beekeeper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c37758/32.png) [@Kansas\_Beekeeper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kansas_Beekeeper)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/28 "2011-09-20T01:36:52Z")
I’ve got an Australian Shepherd that absolutely Hoovers up June bugs on warm summer nights if we leave the porch light on. I’ve no doubt he would eat roaches, if he saw them. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/29 "2011-09-20T01:39:22Z")
Speaking of Australia, I’ll bet cane toads would gladly eat any roaches for you. ---
**Author:** ![Crazyhorse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crazyhorse/32/31_2.png) [@Crazyhorse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crazyhorse)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/30 "2011-09-20T01:45:59Z")
The Earth’s most [dangerous predator](http://www.moonbattery.com/eating_cockroaches.JPG) eats them like [popcorn](http://static.panoramio.com/photos/original/32690185.jpg) in some parts of the world. ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/31 "2011-09-20T01:57:47Z")
Rats love them. I had a pet rat in my classroom many moons ago. Kids would bring roaches from hither and yon to see him eat them up. One night the rat figured a way out of his cage, went to the cage next to his, killed the three mice therein, and was found back in his cage the next morning, looking very proud of himself. He didn’t eat the mice, he just killed them by biting through their skulls. ---
**Author:** ![DaveBfd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DaveBfd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DaveBfd)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/32 "2011-09-20T02:00:40Z")
This thread has ruined my night. I second the fact that centipedes eat everything else that is creepy and in your house though. ---
**Author:** ![Crazyhorse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crazyhorse/32/31_2.png) [@Crazyhorse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crazyhorse)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/33 "2011-09-20T02:05:31Z")
> [@DaveBfd](#): > > This thread has ruined my night. I second the fact that centipedes eat everything else that is creepy and in your house though. I sometimes have [these](http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/221/alecran.jpg/)in my house, and the centipedes run away ( x 100) ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/34 "2011-09-20T02:13:29Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > Geckos. > **[Common house gecko](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_House_Gecko)** > > The common house gecko (Hemidactylus frenatus) is a gecko native to South and Southeast Asia as well as Near Oceania. It is also known as the Asian house gecko, Pacific house gecko, wall gecko, house lizard, tiktiki, chipkali or moon lizard. > These geckos are nocturnal; hiding during the day and foraging for insects at night. They can be seen climbing walls of houses and other buildings in search of insects attracted to porch lights, and are immediately recognisable by their characteristic chir... an ex of mine worked in a pet store and could get these guys for dirt cheap like $1-$2 each at the time. A friend of hers had a huge roach problem. Ex got her like 18 of the geckos. Turned them loose in the kitchen, and the hunting began. Took a few weeks but the roaches pretty much disappeared, alonge with spiders. A few geckos turned up dried out and dead here and there over the next few months. Every once in a while you would see one on a wall somewhere. if you are not sqeamish about tiny reptiles running loose, they are fabulous pest control systems. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/35 "2011-09-20T02:15:44Z")
> [@california\_jobcase](#): > > …[he] was found back in his cage the next morning, looking very proud of himself. He didn’t eat the mice, he just killed them by biting through their skulls. What a dirty rat. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![DaveBfd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DaveBfd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DaveBfd)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/36 "2011-09-20T02:21:08Z")
> [@Crazyhorse](#): > > I sometimes have [these](http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/221/alecran.jpg/)in my house, and the centipedes run away ( x 100) Thankfully I live in Canada. ---
**Author:** ![RearEchelon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b4bc9f/32.png) [@RearEchelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RearEchelon)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/37 "2011-09-20T03:51:30Z")
> [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](#): > > [Tropical jewel wasp](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emerald_cockroach_wasp), sorta. That article made me glad that insects didn’t evolve to be the dominant form of life on the planet. Can you imagine a six-foot wasp stinging you in the brain so you could serve as food source/crib for its larva(e)? [shudder] ---
**Author:** ![pikey\_pete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pikey\_pete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pikey_pete)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/38 "2011-09-20T03:58:44Z")
Humans. I know for a fact that fried giant chinese cockroach is a delicacy. tastes kinda like almonds. when in rome ya know… ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/39 "2011-09-20T05:03:22Z")
> [@Frylock](#): > > How does a centipede catch anything? The bat video doesn’t do the speed of their attack justice [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/Qf8pAwGsuF4/hqdefault.jpg "giant centipede vs tarantula") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qf8pAwGsuF4) > [@Crazyhorse](#): > > I sometimes have [these](http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/221/alecran.jpg/)in my house, and the centipedes run away ( x 100) don’t be so sure. https://www.youtube.com/embed/XE-LMPHR_TY?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2011, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/40 "2011-09-20T06:40:47Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > Where are you getting this stuff? A shark won’t eat a human? Most human predation by sharks is strictly catch and release. Likely because the shark ends up thinking “this isn’t a #%#%#% seal.” However, sharks have been known to consume human beings. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858.md?page=3)