Great Plains Zoo and Delbridge Museum
Education Animals
Madagascar Hissing Cockroach
Gromphadorhina portentosa
Animal Class:
Invertebrates
Diet:
Herbivore
Status in the Wild:
Vulnerable
Sound It Out
Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches hiss by forcing air out of a pair of spiracles, or breathing holes, located along the abdomen. Their hiss can be heard 12 feet away. Adult males hiss when fighting or when trying to attract a female. Cockroaches also hiss when threatened, as a way to ward off predators.
