The male circles the female as he hisses and touches her antennae. But the sound most of us are familiar with is the all-important hiss used when the animal is disturbed and handled. The only time that females and nymphs hiss is when they are disturbed. The hissing can be heard at least 12 feet away. The life cycle of the hissing cockroach is unusual for insects.
Females are ovoviviparous, meaning they give birth to live young.
For approximately 60 days, the female will carry between 30 and 60 eggs. They molt six times before reaching maturity in seven months and can live up to five years. The organizational meeting for this year's class will be at 7 p.m. Feb. 5. Call the zoo for more information. Post your thoughts in The Public Forum.