A white cockroach

Have you ever seen a white cockroach before ? I don't mean those small tiny ones, I am talking about an adult big white cockroach, what was your reaction when you saw one? ,
Well I saw a white cockroach recently in my bathroom and I wont lie to you. I was surprised, I tried to bring it down but before I could find what i can use for that purpose; it disappeared; not literally, but I was surprised at how it could have ran away in that few seconds, I was curious so I decided to research on it .

What are the fallacy that are attached to white coackroaches?

1. They are ablino cockroaches
2. Some thought it is a good omen that something nice would happen
3. Others thought it is like some kinda spiritual visit from an angel ( yea funny)
4. And some think it is a visit from witches or wizards..( too much of Camelot films..lol)

Now let's separate facts from fiction



What are white cockroaches.

Now, I won't bore you with too much science jargons, I will just give you the basic facts

White cockroaches over the years has been attributed to albinism by some people,as we have among humans but the fact is that various science tests had found no trace of albinism in these white cockroaches and the idea was debunked, but what causes white cockroaches? Why do we have them?


This is the best answer

The real cause of a cockroach’s white appearance is that when roaches molt, they don’t only shed their outer shell, they also lose most of the pigmentation (coloration) in their bodies, which must then be replaced. This is a chemical reaction that occurs within the body, usually taking a few hours to fully restore pigmentation..so obviously the big cockroach I saw was in its molting stage and if I had captured it and wait a little longer, it would have turned brown, or maybe it did! Remember I said I was surprised it ran away in that few seconds? Maybe if I had looked well and pay heed to a brown cockroach hiding in the corner, maybe I would have found It..

Molting by the way is when cockroaches shed their exoskeleton replacing it with a roomier and cozier model that allows them the internal space they need to continue growing, can be likened to you changing your clothes when you found out the ones you have are not fitting perfectly or you have outgrown them.

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But why don't we see white cockroaches often?
when cockroaches are in the process of molting, they go into hiding till the process has been restored! why.? Because they are highly vulnerable to dry up and predators after molting, since the new shell is not rigid enough for the muscles to provide much movement at this point, making it hard to run and hide when predators are chasing them.

So white cockroaches after some hours after molting now sport a new brown suit of armor,  ready to go find food, water and shelter. Just like initiation into adulthood.

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A nice fact
All the brown cockroaches you see today had once been white in their lives..
There you have it..

So why did I see a white cockroach that day? Why would you see it?

Maybe I disturbed or something had disturbed the hiding place of the cockroach which propelled it to run outside, if you don't disturb them, you won't see them.

Now I hope you have learnt a new thing today, when you see a white cockroach, I am sure you won't freak out now..ciao.

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