The Bull’s Horn Cockroach (Archimandrita tessellata) is a large insect. It is also called the Giant Peppered Cockroach.

The Bull’s Horn Cockroach is beige to orange-brown with black flecks that look like pepper. It has an oval shape with a hard exoskeleton. Males and females have wings, but they are too heavy to fly.

 

It grows to about 8 centimetres (3 inches) in length. It is one of the largest cockroaches in the world.

The Bull’s Horn Cockroach is native to Central America and South America. It is found in cave entrances. It is terrestrial, living on the ground.

It is omnivorous, eating plant and animal matter.

The Bull’s Horn Cockroach is ovoviviparous. The female has eggs inside her, which hatch after six months, just before they are born. She gives birth to live young, which are independent from birth. The young roaches take 8-9 months to become an adult.

The Bull’s Horn Cockroach lives for 1-2 years.

[Location of photographs: Tbilisi Zoo, Georgia and Tashkent Zoo, Uzbekistan]

Photographer: Martina Nicolls

Martina Nicolls: SIMILAR BUT DIFFERENT IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM