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Sticker of Large black kekerengu
Bug card No. 2500 of 4,939

Large black kekerengu

Platyzosteria novaeseelandiae
Eats: Leftovers and dead thingsCockroaches and termitesForests and woods6 legs

The large black kekerengu is a shiny black cockroach from New Zealand with dark red legs. It is the biggest cockroach that lives only in New Zealand. It cannot fly, so it walks around the forest floor at night.

Lives in
New Zealand, in native lowland forests
Length
2.5 to 2.9 cm (0.98 to 1.1 in)
Top speed
about 2.9 km/h (1.8 mph)
On foot, estimate
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless, but if you pick it up it lets out a smelly yellow liquid. It is best to leave it alone.
What does it eat?
It eats old, rotting bits of plants that it finds among the grass and under logs and stones.
For real!Photo of Large black kekerengu
Picture by Jake. CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

How big is it?

How long is it?

Large black kekerengu about 2.9 cm long (1.1 in)A grain of rice about 6 mm (0.24 in)A toy building brick about 3.2 cm (1.3 in)A crayon about 9 cm (3.5 in)
as long as 5 grains of rice in a rowcould run across a dinner table in 1.2 secondsmoves 28 times its own body length every second

How big is Large black kekerengu compared to YOU?

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How fast is it?

cool stuff

Fun facts

1

When it is grabbed or disturbed, it squirts out a smelly yellow liquid from a gland in its belly.

2

The smell works. Birds such as weka and pūkeko, and even mice, stay away from it.

3

Only grown-up kekerengu can make the smelly liquid.

4

It hides behind tree bark or under stones and logs during the day and comes out at night.

you asked

Most asked questions about Large black kekerengu

?Why is it called a stink roach?

Because when it is disturbed it lets out a smelly yellow liquid that keeps hungry animals away.

?How big is the large black kekerengu?

About 25 to 29 millimetres long, roughly as long as a big paper clip.

?Can the large black kekerengu fly?

No. It has no flying wings and walks everywhere.

For bug experts

Scientific name
Platyzosteria novaeseelandiae
Group
Cockroaches and termites
Family
Blattidae
Classification
Insecta > Blattodea > Blattidae
Lives on
Australia and Oceania
Also known as
Black stink-roach, Black stink cockroach, Black cockroach, Papata pango

Where the facts come from

  1. Platyzosteria novaeseelandiae (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
  2. Picture by Jake. CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.

If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

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