Jumping is a swift action in which one lifts itself from a surface for a brief amount of time and then hits the surface back. Jumping enables the living organism, including some insects such as crickets, to perform a wide range of functions, from escaping an immediate threat to reaching a surface above them. However, do cockroaches jump remained a mystery not until leaproach, a jumping cockroach, was discovered.
No! Cockroaches do not jump like other jumping organisms such as cricket, except for Saltoblattella Montistabularis or leaproach, which can jump up to five feet in a single go. The leaproach lacks wings and has flexible, highly recoiling legs like a grasshopper. However, contrary to the above, other cockroaches are equipped with wings that help them impulsively fly in situations that need jumping, such as escaping an imminent threat.
Insects, including crickets with the ability to jump, are pretty difficult to contain. It’s also why crickets are least favored as feeder insects for exotic pets compared to cockroaches, including Discoid, Dubia, and Red Runner Roaches. Imagine an infestation with cockroaches, and their ability to jump would have made the extermination very difficult for us.
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Saltoblattella Montistabularis
Saltoblattella Montistablularis, also known as the leaproach, is a newly discovered species of cockroach found in South Africa near Cape Town. Its unique jumping mechanism and anatomy make them quite similar to a grasshopper.
Appearance
Saltoblattella Montistabularis is a golden light brown cockroach. Its body is corn-shaped with multiple striations and a miniature grasshopper or a baby cricket.
Saltoblattella Montistabularis has six legs with the back pair specifically enlarged and designed to jump.
S Montistabularis has two long antennas and black-colored protruded eyes.
Size
The adult leaproach measures 0.2 to 0.4 inches in size.
Wings
Leaproach or Saltoblattela Montistabularis do not have wings
Distribution and Habitat
Saltoblattera Montistablusaris is native to Table Top near Cape Town, South Africa. However, it is also found across western parts of the country.
Leaproach is a species of the outdoors and shares its habitat with grasshoppers. It is primarily found in long grasses and sedge stems.
Diet
Leaproach feeds on green grass stems and sedge and loves to feed on rotting plant leaves and flowers.
A Jumping Cockroach
Leaproach or the jumping cockroach is a unique species of cockroach that has the ability to jump. However, recently, two other cockroaches have been discovered, one in Cape Cederberg and the other in Mossel bay.
Do you know the biggest cockroaches measure more than 3 inches in size?
How do Roaches jump?
It’s a fact that not all cockroaches can jump. Instead, cockroaches are made to run fast. Some cockroaches, such as the American cockroach, can run at a staggering speed of up to 3 miles an hour, a great leap for their size.
In addition to the running capability of roaches, they are equipped with flying. Cockroaches fly in small bursts, and their flying is more like a glide.
However, the leaproach can fascinatingly jump up to 5 feet in a single go. The cockroach jumps by recoiling the extensor’s muscles in the hind legs.
Once the cockroach is ready to jump, it takes the typical jumping position by contracting the flexor muscle and storing elastic energy. After that, the flexor muscles relax, and at the same time, the extensors muscles contract with a sudden jerk, lifting the cockroach.
Jumping Roaches are not common
You will be fascinated to know that out of four thousand species of roaches found worldwide, only three species have been discovered to jump. Moreover, all the jumping roaches are only found in South Africa.
Keeping these facts in mind, jumping roaches are not common. Instead, they are very scarce. That is why jumping cockroaches are discovered so late.
Does killing a cockroach attract More? Read this interesting article to get your answers.
Do cockroaches jump like crickets
No! cockroaches do not jump like crickets. Instead, cockroaches fly away from danger when needed. However, the jumping cockroach, also known as the leaproach, jumps like crickets.
Like crickets, the jumping roach recoils the extensor muscle with a jerk that pushes the cockroach up into the air. The jumping of a cockroach is so similar to cricket that it will make you confused between the two.
Additional Read!
