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Giant cockroach among jungle find
BBC News Asia-Pacific ^ | Thursday, 23 December, 2004

Posted on 12/24/2004 3:32:37 AM PST by bd476

"A "monster" cockroach and other new insects have been discovered in the jungles of Borneo, scientists say. An expedition of caves and cliffs, led by the Nature Conservancy, also said it saw previously unknown fish and plants.

"In just five weeks, the expedition team discovered numerous new species previously unknown to science," the conservancy's Scott Stanley said.

"Who knows what else is out there?" he added, calling for the area surveyed in East Kalimantan to be preserved.

"If something is not done soon to protect these areas, dozens of species could disappear before anyone knew they ever existed."

Borneo is one of the world's richest regions, in terms of biodiversity, but the area had no special status that might have protected it against illegal mining or logging.

The team of scientists explored four "karst" systems of limestone caves, cliffs and sinkholes in the Sangkulirang Peninsula, about 1,200km (750 miles) north-west of Indonesia's capital, Jakarta.

At 10cm (4in) long, the newly-discovered cockroach is believed to be the largest in the world.

As well as the "monster" cockroach, the scientists reported a new "micro-crab", a pure-white 6.5cm-long millipede, two new species of begonia, two new species of snail and several new types of fish, the conservancy said."


TOPICS: Pets/Animals
KEYWORDS: borneo; bugs; cockroach; fourinchroach; justewwww; newdemocrat; roaches
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To: ExGeeEye
ever go patrolling the house with a 12-ga.

Before I got them under control years ago, I used to shoot them with a pellet gun in my back yard. I would turn on the back yard lights and watch the whole yard move. I shot them off the sides of trees or just runing across the patio. Sometimes I would have to hit one of them two or three times to slow him down.

41 posted on 12/24/2004 4:13:50 AM PST by arthurus (Better to fight them over THERE than over HERE.)
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To: bd476

Well, the ones in Texas do and they get as big and gross as any of them. In Florida I think they call them Palmetto bugs.


42 posted on 12/24/2004 4:15:57 AM PST by Spandau
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To: arthurus
I pull my tongue out of my cheek to say...

wow.

Seriesly, I have gone patrolling the house with a can of Raid...

43 posted on 12/24/2004 4:16:15 AM PST by ExGeeEye (And a cartridge in a bare tree...)
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To: Hot Tabasco
LOL, maybe you're considering a scorched earth policy. It's hard to imagine nauseating thinking about what they eat.
44 posted on 12/24/2004 4:18:25 AM PST by bd476
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To: bd476

There are hidden contradictions in the minds of people who "love Nature" while deploring the "artificialities" with which "Man has spoiled 'Nature.'" The obvious contradiction lies in their choice of words, which imply that Man and his artifacts are not part of "Nature" -- but beavers and their dams are. But the contradictions go deeper than this prima-facie absurdity. In declaring his love for a beaver dam (erected by beavers for beavers' purposes) and his hatred for dams erected by men (for the purposes of men) the "naturist" reveals his hatred for his own race -- i.e., his own self hatred.
In the case of "Naturists" such self-hatred is understandable; they are such a sorry lot. But hatred is too strong an emotion to feel toward them; pity and contempt are the most they rate.
As for me, willy-nilly I am a man, not a beaver, and H. sapiens is the only race I have or can have. Fortunately for me, I like being part of a race made up of men and women -- it strikes me as a fine arrangement and perfectly "natural."

Robert Anson Heinlein


45 posted on 12/24/2004 4:18:49 AM PST by HuntsvilleTxVeteran (I went to school for 20 years, well I went to the 10th grade twice.)
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To: Darkwolf377

It must be the demo-commies next party nominee for POTUS. I am sure it favors, peanut butter and jelly samich scary kerry. Merry Christmas to you Darkwolf377. NSNR


46 posted on 12/24/2004 4:19:15 AM PST by No Surrender No Retreat
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To: Spandau

Maybe it's the hour, but I wonder if these things could be trained as bomb or mine detectors.


47 posted on 12/24/2004 4:20:00 AM PST by bd476
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To: Spandau

At old 6 Engine in DC we used to race them, 4 inches would be a baby. They sounded like a Sikorski helicopter when they took off.


48 posted on 12/24/2004 4:20:27 AM PST by sgtbono2002
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To: ExGeeEye

Actually I am not exaggerating . It is the ones we call palmetto bugs or, I suspect, the ones backhoe called aeroplane bugs.


49 posted on 12/24/2004 4:20:41 AM PST by arthurus (Better to fight them over THERE than over HERE.)
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To: HuntsvilleTxVeteran

Excellent Heinlein passage. Thanks!


50 posted on 12/24/2004 4:21:24 AM PST by bd476
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To: bd476

Is this actually bigger than the 5" Brazilian whistling cockroaches? A high school kid in town acquired some of those and was raising them a few years ago for some sort of science fair project. A bunch of them escaped and he got some of them back. So far they haven't showed up noticeably in the local fauna but, then, I'm not sure folks hereabouts would notice anything new. I looked at the boy's bugs several times and never heard them whistle.


51 posted on 12/24/2004 4:25:15 AM PST by arthurus (Better to fight them over THERE than over HERE.)
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To: bd476
At 10cm (4in) long, the newly-discovered cockroach is believed to be the largest in the world.

They've obviously never been to Puerto Vallarta.

52 posted on 12/24/2004 4:27:30 AM PST by TigersEye (Are your parents Pro-Choice? I guess you got lucky!)
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To: mewzilla
LOL. They've seen too many screenings of Joe's Apartment.

Ye gahds, I thought I was the only one who saw that flick!

o/~ Fun-ky Tow-el... (Towel's got the funk!) o/~

53 posted on 12/24/2004 4:33:26 AM PST by Slings and Arrows (Am Yisrael Chai!)
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To: William of Orange

The reincarnation of Yassar Arafat.....


54 posted on 12/24/2004 4:33:44 AM PST by Banjoguy ("The business of the Church is business"......)
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To: bd476

I worked with tropical roaches from South America that were about that big.


55 posted on 12/24/2004 4:35:59 AM PST by shubi (Peace through superior firepower.)
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To: Mad Mammoth

"O-Kaaaay...4 inches. That accounts for ONE part of Terry McAuliffe's anatomy, "

You give him too much credit by half......


56 posted on 12/24/2004 4:38:58 AM PST by roaddog727 (The marginal propensity to save is 1 minus the marginal propensity to consume.)
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To: shubi
I worked with tropical roaches from South America that were about that big.

Were they management or staff?

57 posted on 12/24/2004 4:39:52 AM PST by Slings and Arrows (Am Yisrael Chai!)
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To: ExGeeEye
...endangered Cockroaches...

Let's help; break out the bug spray.
58 posted on 12/24/2004 4:51:29 AM PST by ARCADIA (Abuse of power comes as no surprise)
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To: bd476
LOL--the "official" Florida state insect is the Zebra Wing Butterfly

Then again--we have lizards that eat the giant Palmetto bugs.

59 posted on 12/24/2004 5:03:07 AM PST by NautiNurse
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To: bd476
...the newly-discovered cockroach is believed to be the largest in the world.

There are many more that are larger than this:
Billy Clintoooooon
Hitlery Clintoooooon
Terry McAwful
Dean, Pelosi, Gephardt, Rangle, Charleton, Jackson (Sr. & Jr.), et al!
60 posted on 12/24/2004 5:04:11 AM PST by leprechaun9
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