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A hiss and a miss

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WORLD Radio - A hiss and a miss

Kicker: Authorities discovered a six-figure population of illegal Madagascar hissing cockroaches, ending a breeding operation that was apparently far more successful than regulators preferred.


Editor's note: The following text is a transcript of a podcast story. To listen to the story, click on the arrow beneath the headline above.

NICK EICHER, HOST: Authorities in Australia say they've made the biggest seizure of exotic invertebrates in the history of the country.

Officials confiscated from a breeder more than 100,000 live cockroaches.

And not the ordinary household type. No, these were Madagascar hissing cockroaches—and here you thought cockroaches couldn’t get any worse!

These dudes are big, they’re commonly used for reptile food, and authorities valued them at $2 Aussie dollars each: works out to about $140,000 U.S. for the lot. But they are illegal to import, keep, breed, or sell in Australia.

Officials say the roaches will be euthanized. 

No word yet on how, but I suspect Roach Motels, remember those old ads?

AUDIO: Roaches check in, but they don't check out!

It’s The World and Everything in It.


WORLD Radio transcripts are created on a rush deadline. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of WORLD Radio programming is the audio record.

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