A new mode of parental care in cockroaches

A new form of maternal provisioning of newly hatched nymphs is described in the ovoviviparous cockroach Gromphadorhina portentosa. Shortly after expelling the hatching egg case, the female exudes from her abdominal tip a whitish, translucent material on which neonates actively feed. Integumentary gland cells lining the brood sac are the most likely source of the secretion. This form of maternal provisioning may not be restricted to the Madagascar hissing cockroach; a glandular brood sac similar to that of G. portentosa is found in at least three additional ovoviviparous cockroaches.