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I recently witnessed a cockroach eat its shell after it moulted. Do cockroaches always do this?

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  • $\begingroup$ I have read that spiders eat their webs to re-spin them somewhere else. Eating a shell Might be some form of recycling $\endgroup$
    – Alex Stone
    May 26, 2013 at 1:44

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Yes, it's fairly common for insects to eat their egg casings, shed skin etc. where possible. In a similar vein, as Alex Stone mentions, spiders often eat their webs too. There's generally plenty of valuable protein and nutrients tied up in there, so why not recycle?

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  • $\begingroup$ Thank you for the link! I thought along the line of recycling but I wasn't sure. $\endgroup$
    – gnerkus
    Jun 5, 2013 at 12:43

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