Passage I

A study was conducted to examine whether female Blattella germanica (a species of cockroach) prefer to eat cat food, cheese, ham, or peanuts. First, 200 mg of each of the 4 foods was separately placed into a single box. Then, adult female B. germanica were added to the box. Figure 1 shows how the mass, in mg, of each food in the box changed over time after the addition of the B. germanica. Table 1 shows the percent by mass of carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and water, respectively, present in each of the 4 foods tested in the study.

Figure adapted from Prachumporn Lauprasert et al.,"Food Preference and Feeding Behavior of the German Cockroach, Blattella germanica (Linnaeus). ©2006 by the Faculty of Science Chulalongkorn University.

Table adapted from U.S. Department of Agriculture, USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference. Release 24. 2011.