Hung Wen Senior High School in Taichung started this semester its first elective course on cockroaches in an attempt to overturn the stereotypical view that cockroaches are dirty.
The course is also designed to meet the Ministry of Education’s policy to encourage high-school students to take unique courses.
Biology teacher Chen Chun-ying (陳俊穎) said he developed an interest in cockroaches after dissecting the insect when he was studying at National Chung Hsing University, adding that he now keeps Madagascar hissing cockroaches as pets.
Photo: Ou Su-mei, Taipei Times
The Madagascar hissing cockroach is one of the largest known cockroach species, Chen said, adding that they do not smell.
The cockroaches most commonly seen in homes — the German cockroach (Blattella germanica) and the American cockraoch (Periplaneta americana ) — exude a smell, which serves as a location signal that tells other cockroaches where they are, Chen said.
People typically assume that the presence of cockroaches is indicative of unsanitary conditions, but they can learn a lot from studying cockroaches, he said.
Photo: Ou Su-mei, Taipei Times
Chen said his course examines the insect’s digestive, reproductive, muscular and nervous systems.
Of the 75 species of cockroaches found in Taiwan, less than 10 are commonly seen in homes, he said, adding that the most common are the German and American cockroaches, while other species mostly live in the mountains and woods.
Chen said that the American cockroach is used in Chinese medicine to help treat wounds and chronic gastritis, adding that the species is a waste disposer that aides in the recycling of matter.
Cockroaches are extremely hardy, capable of living for a month without food or water, and although they only mate once, the female cockroach lays more than 10,000 eggs, he said.
Cockroaches can detect danger through their antennas, and their reaction is to charge forward, Chen said, adding that if you want to hit them, you should aim for the space in front of them.
However, he said he wished humans and cockroaches could live together in harmony, and asked that people refrain from killing them with newspapers and shoes.
Although cockroaches seem to cling tenaciously to life, Chen said it is actually difficult to keep them as pets.
Madagascar cockroaches or the Turkestan cockroach are the two species best kept as pets. As long as they have water and bird feed for protein, they are able to feed themselves, he said.
Pet cockroaches should be kept in specimen boxes, which should be kept in another cardboard box for double-layering so the insects can hide, he said.
Keeping pet roaches might not be a popular way to meet girls though. Chen said there was a girl who rejected him because of his hobby.
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