Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
Bronx Cockroaches Have Discovered Dating Apps
By
Nell Casey
Published Jan 24, 2017
Modified Jan 24, 2017
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Julie Larsen Maher © WCS
By
Nell Casey
Published Jan 24, 2017
Modified Jan 24, 2017
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
There are some real creeps on all those dating apps, amirite? Well, now there are some legit creepy crawlies, too, because the Bronx Zoo's Madagascar hissing cockroaches are single and ready to mingle crawl across your face in the middle of the night searching for love.
It's time for the zoo's annual "Name-a-Roach" tradition, where the lovelorn and the vindictive can name a giant insect in honor of whomever they choose. "For a $10 donation, your loved one, or unloved one, will receive the certificate to cherish for years to come, featuring the name chosen for your Valentine's roach," the Zoo promises.
This year the Zoo is also giving away plush cockroach toys and boxes of fancy chocolate for people who donate $35 (or $50 if you want both). Seems less skeevy than plush genital lice, but you live your own life.
The Zoo would also like to remind you that, unlike the roaches that make homes inside your tennis sneakers, Madagascar hissing cockroaches are "not considered pests and rarely enter homes." They're the world's largest roach species (four inches, baby) and can be found in the Zoo's "Madagascar!" exhibit, which also features lots of lemurs, crocodiles and these cute cat-like creatures called fossa, who genus name means "hidden anus."
Happy Valentine's Day!
Tagged
bronx zoo
hissing cockroaches
name a roach
valentine's day
original
Nell Casey
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
Why LCD Soundsystem's 'New York, I Love You' is still the city's most honest anthem
The song continues to resonate 20 years after its release, even showing up in movies and TV to convey people’s mixed feelings toward the city.
By
Sonia Rao
Published Oct 30, 2026 at 9:30 a.m. ET
Would you live on a Halloween block? These Hackensackers live for it.
A guillotine, killer clowns, clownfish: They've got it all on Clinton Place.
By
James Ramsay
Arts & Entertainment
Would you live on a Halloween block? These Hackensackers live for it.
A guillotine, killer clowns, clownfish: They've got it all on Clinton Place.
By
James Ramsay
Owl pellets and period equity: What's happening at NYC's public libraries this November
By
Alec Hamilton
How the Village Halloween Parade keeps its soul
By
Hannah Frishberg
'You Can See Everything' … as long as you go to Staten Island
By
Sonia Rao
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .