Are you trying to find out what animals eat cockroaches? There are plenty of animals fond of eating many different kinds of cockroaches and palmetto bugs like American cockroaches, Asian cockroaches, German cockroaches, or Smoky Brown cockroaches. In this article, I have mentioned what eats roaches most fondly.
Cockroaches have many predators that would like to prey on them. The list includes some mammals, avians, amphibians, reptiles, and even some insects. These tiny creatures are an extreme source of protein to their carnivores and play a considerable role in the food chain.
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List of animals which will prey on a cockroach
Cockroaches are not the favorite to humans, but they certainly are to most animals. Here is the list of what animals eat cockroaches. Surprisingly, even some of our pet animals eat cockroaches, and others like to kill them.
For instance, many people keep geckos and huntsman spiders to control the spread of roaches in their households. Check out below for further details about what animals eat cockroaches and what pets kill cockroaches.
1. Cats eat cockroaches
Cats are one of the most loved pets and we often wonder if do cats eat cockroaches? Sometimes they don’t eat them but rather scare them away by chasing them a little.
Cats often like to have fun by running after them before actually hunting them. Other times, they would only chew the roaches and spit away. These cockroaches are a rich source of proteins for cats and do little to no harm to them. So cats can eat cockroaches. However, there is a high chance of threat to the cat’s health if the cockroaches carry diseases with them or have contacted any insecticide.
Isn’t it incredible that cats can even hear the cockroach noises and locate exactly where they are? It is because of their high hearing frequency cats can find out the roaches easily. Not only cats, but cockroaches can also find out the cat’s location if it is surrounded by the litter or where it has urinated.
Since cockroaches are attracted to unhygienic environments, there is a high chance they might already be there. You can learn more about cockroaches and palmetto bug infestations here.
2. Birds:
Although cockroaches are not the favorite snack of birds, they do like to eat these little critters as much as they like any other insect.
Cockroaches tend to live in dark and moist places such as bathrooms and kitchens, and this is why it becomes hard for the birds to prey on them. There are many species of birds that are likely to attain high proteins by feeding on roaches. However, due to the unsanitary living places of cockroaches, they can harm the birds if ingested by them.
3. Lizards eat cockroaches
Reptiles also come in the list of what animals eat palmetto bugs. Mainly, lizards that eat roaches are monitor lizards, leopard geckos, and iguanas. They are also sometimes called natural predators of cockroaches. So, yes, lizards can eat cockroaches.
Learn more: Do lizards eat Cockroaches?
Pet lizards like geckos and iguanas are at the top for having roaches as their favorite meal. But, keep in mind that the cockroach must not have been contacted with any insecticide as it will only put the lizard’s health at risk. So, yes, geckos eat roaches.
It’s better to breed roaches like Red Runner Roach, Discoid Roaches, Dubia Roach to feed your exotic pets like lizards, scorpions, etc.
4. Frogs and Toads:
After reptiles come the amphibians. To be more specific, toads and frogs among the amphibians are the next animals passionate about eating cockroaches. These are also known as the biggest enemies of cockroaches, as they never let go of any chance of having to eat them. What makes it harder for the cockroaches is that the frogs and toads can effortlessly eat several roaches in one go.
In addition to that, these animals live in moist and dull environments where there are high chances of encountering roaches. You can even find them in other areas like backyards and most of the gardens. They are bad enough for other insects as well, and for this reason, most people purposely let toads and frogs reside in their gardens.
5. Opossums:
Adding to the list, opossums are also one of the predators of cockroaches. These omnivore animals eat cockroaches and anything that comes into their sight: animals, insects, or birds. They would gladly eat from garbage as well. Anything you can think of, and the opossums will want to eat that.
Though they will help you get roaches-free household, they will also harm your plants and fight with your pets, or in some cases, you can get infected through them as they carry some dangerous diseases. So not a great idea to keep them on purpose.
6. Rats and Mice:
Rats and Mice like to eat insects like slugs, shellfish, and of course, cockroaches. Although they fail to catch them most of the time, when they do, they like to eat them in an instant. Mice mostly go for the American or German cockroaches, while rats will feed on many other species of cockroaches no matter how big their sizes are.
If you are wondering about using rats or mice for pests control, you better back off; since they carry many different diseases within themselves, they might not be a good choice.
7. Beetles:
Even some insects eat cockroaches, beetles being one of them, readily eat up the roaches. These include ground beetles, rove beetles, lady, beetles, and soldier beetles. They are often used to eliminate insects and save the ecosystem. However, I wouldn’t suggest you do this as it can turn out a bigger disaster.
8. Spiders:
Yes! You read it right. Spiders are one of the insects that cockroaches must avoid contacting. These creatures prey on cockroaches once they encounter them. Some arachnids including, huntsman spiders and recluse spiders, are also known to immobilize roaches using their venom instead of catching them through a web. Others like to use their webs to seize cockroaches as their meals.
Learn More: Do Spiders Eat Roaches?
9. Parasitic Wasps:
Parasitic wasps have the most strange way of preying upon the roaches, including stinging the cockroach’s brain, after which the cockroach is paralyzed. Next, the wasps carry the cockroach to their nests and lay eggs inside the cockroach’s eggs. When the new wasps’ hatch, they tend to eat up the cockroach before anything else. This practice is done mainly by a few kinds of wasps to Palmetto bugs and many other roach species.
10. Ants:
Just as tiny as they are, they don’t let any cockroach go out of their hand only if they can capture them. These tiny predators often miss their chance of eating them as the cockroaches are way faster to escape and leave the ants no choice. You will find invasive red imported fire ant and argentine ants preying on the roaches mainly.
More Read:
Does Boric Acid Kill Cockroaches?
What to pour down the Drain to kill roaches?
