Cockroach Dissection System

The cockroach dissection system refers to the procedures and anatomical techniques used to expose and study the internal organs and organ systems—such as digestive, nervous, and reproductive systems—of a cockroach specimen for educational purposes.​

Dissection Procedure

A cockroach is usually killed with chloroform or by drowning before dissection begins.​

The specimen is pinned dorsal side up in a dissecting tray, with wings clipped and pins passing through the abdominal sterna and coxae of the legs to stabilize it.​

Using fine scissors, the lateral membranes (pleura) between the terga (dorsal plates) and sterna (ventral plates) of the thorax and abdomen are cut; posterior and anterior incisions expose internal organs.​

The terga are then carefully removed to open the thoracic and abdominal cavities for examination of organs such as the alimentary canal, reproductive system, salivary glands, fat bodies, and tracheae[​