# 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:** 4
**Author:** ![Doug\_Bowe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df788c/32.png) [@Doug\_Bowe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_Bowe)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/61 "2011-09-21T02:55:58Z")
I don’t know the spelling, but we called it a vinigar-oon. It’s uglier than a cockroach. But it lives to eat 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 21, 2011, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/62 "2011-09-21T03:12:40Z")
> [@Leo\_Bloom](#): > > Scuttle like the wind? Kind of like “Break like the wind”, only different. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/63 "2011-09-21T04:02:01Z")
> [@Silver Tyger Girl](#): > > Badgers, and other insectivores. Badgers? _Badgers?_ We don’t need no stinking Badgers! ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/64 "2011-09-21T04:02:30Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > You are such a grumpy old curmudgeon sometimes (and I say that with affection) but this post just made me snort with laughter. Well played, sir. Then my work here is done. 😃 ---
**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 21, 2011, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/65 "2011-09-21T10:10:58Z")
Oh yeah, forgot to add, spiders. Big hunting spiders will take down a roach the size of my thumb. ---
**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 21, 2011, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/66 "2011-09-21T20:21:31Z")
> [@Doug\_Bowe](#): > > I don’t know the spelling, but we called it a vinigar-oon. It’s uglier than a cockroach. But it lives to eat them. [Whip scorpion](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thelyphonida), a/k/a/ vinegaroon. I think these critters were the inspiration for the Shadow vessels in Babylon 5. ---
**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 21, 2011, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/67 "2011-09-21T23:30:02Z")
> [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > [Whip scorpion](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thelyphonida), a/k/a/ vinegaroon. Gadzooks! I’d rather have cockroaches. ---
**Author:** ![palacheck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a88e57/32.png) [@palacheck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/palacheck)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/68 "2011-09-22T00:52:44Z")
\*\*Opossums. \*\* My girlfriend wanted me to call animal control one night after seeing two different opossums in one night(well, they looked different). She’s lived in Texas for over 40 years and still acts like a helpless child when a bug or rodent comes along. I basically told her: “when you walk outside at night to go to your car do you want to see a possum every once in a while, or would you rather be dive-bombed by giant tree roaches _nightly_?” She chose the opossums. ---
**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 22, 2011, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/69 "2011-09-22T01:45:05Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Gadzooks! I’d rather have cockroaches. Not me, I’ll take a non-venoumous, dedicated predator that’s not interested in humans over a fucking cockroach any day. ---
**Author:** ![snailboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/97f17d/32.png) [@snailboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snailboy)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/70 "2011-09-22T02:56:13Z")
> [@palacheck](#): > > \*\*Opossums. \*\* > > My girlfriend wanted me to call animal control one night after seeing two different opossums in one night(well, they looked different). She’s lived in Texas for over 40 years and still acts like a helpless child when a bug or rodent comes along. … or a marsupial. ---
**Author:** ![manila](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e5b9ba/32.png) [@manila](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/manila)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/71 "2011-09-22T03:37:44Z")
> [@Sal\_Ammoniac](#): > > Actually, roaches, at least in West Africa, _do_ fly. And let me tell you, I don’t like them the better for it. And you had to tell me that a week before am due to leave for Gabon:eek: ---
**Author:** ![Sleel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/73ab20/32.png) [@Sleel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleel)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/72 "2011-09-22T03:55:19Z")
Damn near anything that eats insects eats roaches too. The reason they survive is their breeding cycle (prolific) and their hardiness (un-fucking-believable). They can go without food for weeks, go without air for at least half an hour, and can flatten themselves to fit into really tiny spaces, which also makes them hard to smash. Many cockroaches can fly; it depends on the species. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/73 "2011-09-22T04:13:40Z")
The only way to be sure is to n…oh forget it. They’ll survive that too. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/74 "2011-09-22T14:41:28Z")
So, you establish a colony of geckos in your house and you have no roach problem. What do you do about the gecko poop problem? ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/75 "2011-09-22T14:53:56Z")
> [@BlinkingDuck](#): > > When I lived in Southern Georgia many locals actually used lizards (not sure if geckos). They actually had a formula for # sq feet per lizard initially and number to ‘restock’ every 6 months. [anecdata]I can corroborate this. A couple years ago the window of my condo broke and the association didn’t repair it for several months. During which lizards would just walk it , but they had a hard time finding their way out again. They’d shrivel up and die. So I figured that they needed some water, so I left out a water dish and I no longer found shrivelled lizard husks around my place. I was worried that it might increase my roach problem, because roaches need water, too, but it actually helped my roach problem, didn’t see a roach until the window was repaired.[/anecdata] ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Tyger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/fbc32d/32.png) [@Silver\_Tyger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Tyger)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/76 "2011-09-22T15:36:08Z")
> [@Leo\_Bloom](#): > > The only way to be sure is to n…oh forget it. They’ll survive that too. Actually Mythbusters tested it and roaches weren’t the most resistant to radiation (I’m too lazy to look up specifics). Of course, the problem is, unless you nuke _everywhere_ they’ll just move back in. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/77 "2011-09-22T22:02:17Z")
> [@even\_sven](#): > > . . . a house seething with roaches that occasionally dive bomb you. > > . . . Whenever I start to think it might be nice to live in a tropical climate (because I love warmth and humidity), I’ll remember this sentence. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2011, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/78 "2011-09-26T17:06:24Z")
Man, I’m glad there are other options than centipedes. Almost anything else, I can tolerate. Scorpions? No problem. Spiders? A house just isn’t the same without a few. Geckos? They’re kind of cute. But 'pedes? No way, no how-- They just give me the creeping heebie jeebies. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2011, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/79 "2011-09-26T18:57:59Z")
> [@shijinn](#): > > so basically everything eats cockroaches, and yet they thrive.. Everything eats them _because_ they thrive - they’re abundant, so they’re a ready food supply. > [@guizot](#): > > The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Organization. Generally they taste the person, but don’t finish him off when they discover it isn’t a seal or their normal prey. (Though I think maybe tiger sharks will.) Went looking for cites. > **[Only about a dozen of the more than 300 species of sharks have been involved...](https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/sharkseat.html)** > > Only about a dozen of the more than 300 species of sharks have been involved in attacks on humans. Sharks evolved millions of years before humans existed and therefore humans are not part of their normal diets. Sharks primarily feed on smaller fish... Says humans are not of a shark’s natural diet. Duh. Doesn’t preclude sharks from eating them if they are handy. Also says sharks investigate with their mouths. Fair enough, and many may decide not to proceed once taking a nip. Site wants to emphasize sharks are at greater risk from humans, and as a population that is true. Nevertheless, nothing there indicates sharks won’t eat humans. > **[Sharks as Predators of Humans](http://www.elasmo-research.org/education/topics/saf_eating_humans.htm)** > > Put a description of the page here Again, a site trying to deemphasize the danger from sharks. States statistics on actual rarity of shark attacks, and deaths from shark attack being mush less. Also mentions that sharks have a variety of behaviors, from curiosity, defense, as well as predation. Stll, not convincing. [Shark attack - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shark_attack) (yes, it’s wiki - deal) Discusses different shark behaviors, and different kinds of attacks. Does mention that normal shark hunting technique is a big strike, then pull back for victim to die. That contributes to human survival, as they get pulled out of the water in the interim. But documented instances of sharks killing and eating humans, including open sea ship disasters. White-tip sharks most common culprits. Bottom line - most shark species don’t attack humans at all. The ones that do, don’t do so that frequently. When they do, they may be probing defening rather than hunting. But being exposed in open water, especially with blood in the water, is risky. > [@](#): > > Exactly–it’s just that these aren’t natural prey, and I don’t necessary agree that fish don’t like to eat roaches. In any case, I can’t see why a fish would deliberately want to eat metal “knowing” it’s metal. Fishing bits of metal and plastic are designed to look like insects and fish - natural prey for big fish. Fish don’t “know” it’s metal and plastic. Cockroaches are designed to look like insects. I suspect fish do “know” they are insects, and eat them accordingly. How frequently roaches end up in their regular diet is unknown, but the likelihood of a fish to eat one if present is fairly high. > [@outlierrn](#): > > Not me, I’ll take a non-venoumous, dedicated predator that’s not interested in humans over a fucking cockroach any day. Too _eat_? That’s how they were first mentioned, as something humans eat. It was mentioned they were eaten instead of cockroaches. The comment you cited was someone who’d prefer to eat cochroaches over those things. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2011, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858/80 "2011-09-26T19:12:34Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Everything eats them _because_ they thrive - they’re abundant, so they’re a ready food supply. Then why doesn’t anything think of humans as food? In more than a parasitic way, I mean. Sure, lions & tigers and bears will sometimes munch on us, but nothing seems to really get turned on at the thought of us being on the menu. They always go after a seal or a fawn or something instead. I mean, we’re _really_ easy prey. Do we taste funky or something? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-eats-roaches/596858.md?page=5)