You need roaches in your life. No, not the few pest species you might recognize scurrying across the floor, but some of their amazing, underrated cousins. Cockroaches are surprisingly diverse (there are even beautiful ones!), and they’re crucial contributors to ecosystems worldwide. Entomologist and pest control field supervisor Megan Wilson, Ph.D., helps us change our perspective on these sixlegged frenemies.

Join our host and museum curator Jessica Ware, Ph.D., as she and her guest reveal surprising facts about the order Blattodea—roaches and termites. (Yeah, that’s right, termites are roaches, too!) We’ll also meet one of Jessica’s science heroes—termite expert Margaret Collins, the first Black woman to receive a Ph.D. in entomology. The series is produced for PBS by the American Museum of Natural History.

#Cockroaches #Termites #InsectScience #AwardWorthyInsect

Image: USGS Bee Inventory and Monitoring Lab

Original Production Funding Provided by National Science Foundation Grant No. 2120006

Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

*****
PBS Member Stations rely on viewers like you. To support your local station, go to: http://to.pbs.org/DonateTerra
*****

Subscribe to PBS Terra so you never miss an episode! https://bit.ly/3mOfd77

And keep up with Insectarium and PBS Terra on:
Facebook:   / pbsdigitalstudios  
Instagram:   / pbsds  
TikTok:   / pbsdigitalstudios