80 years later, a cockroach thought to be extinct reappears

Incredulous at the find, the student claims that his first thought upon finding the cockroach was “no, that can't be”, after all, he found families of the species in a single Banyan tree. The finding was a big surprise for everyone, as the Panesthia lata – scientific name of this cockroach -, it was considered extinct about 80 years ago, more precisely since the 1930s. Learn more about this rare insect here!

Read more: Bush voles believed to be extinct found for the first time in 20 years

Panesthia lata

Unique to Lord Howe Island, the insect was considered extinct in the 1930s. According to researchers, its extinction began after rats were brought to the island in 1918, which were eradicated from the region in 2019. From there, they began to study the reintroduction of the cockroach in the place.

However, this introduction will no longer be necessary, after all, during an exploration in North Bay, the student professor of biology at the University of Sydney, Maxim Adams, found families of the rare insect at the foot of a tree. The search continued through the region in search of more families, but was unsuccessful.

Image: Justin Gilligan/NSW DPE

With a reddish black metallic appearance, the cockroach found is considered large, can be 22 to 40 mm long and does not contain wings. the feeding of Panesthia lata initially consists of wood, which makes its reappearance a great reason to celebrate, after all the 11 different species of Panesthia wood cockroaches present in Australia are of fundamental importance for the balance of your ecosystem. This is because, by living inside rotten logs, these cockroaches recycle nutrients and accelerate decomposition, serving as food for other living beings.

As it has microorganisms in its digestive system, the Panesthia lata manages to break down the cellulose of rotten wood, thus being a great engineer of the Australian forest that stays on the ground during the day and feeds at night.

However, although their food was initially wood, these cockroaches are now believed to feed on rocks, as part of their evolution together with the habitat. "We now believe they are more of a 'rock cockroach', with rocks forming an important component of their habitat, possibly due to their co-evolution. along the ground foraging on Lord Howe Island Wooden," said Carlile, part of the team of scientists that rediscovered the Lord Howe Island stick insect in 2001.