By Josie Barker
As we know, our planet Earth faces decay. Humanity as a whole confronts unavoidable extinction; and soon, we will surpass the deadline of the man-made climate-clock, too late to do anything about our broken society. Our presence on this planet leaves not only detrimental, but irreversible damage, and life as we know it, presently will be engulfed by flames due to our careless fueling of global warming. Like it or not, the world’s temperature will increase, sea levels will rise, and we will die. But on a positive note, not all of the survival of the species lies in shambles. Consequently, due to our contribution to climate change, cockroaches will rule the world.
You heard it, the end of humanity gives leeway to the reign of cockroaches and other pest-like species. Although the human world record for holding breath is just shy of thirty-minutes, cockroaches surpass that time by fifteen minutes! Not only do these critters have freaky gill-like structures, they are built to withstand nothing short of nuclear war. Hypothetically, if both a singular roach and a human being were left foodless on the streets of New York for weeks on end, even though the human body can sustain life without nutrients for over a month, the roach will indeed triumph due to its dietary flexibility. Varying from restaurant remnants to left over cardboard, the cockroach stomach adjusts to inherently everything. Where humans lack in survivability aspects, cockroaches shine. Through ingenious ways of water conservation, social behaviors, evolutionary experience, rapid reproduction, and adaptability, these worldly vermin unfortunately will bask in the defeat of biodiversity.
Global warming, a critical accelerating threat, continues to damage Earth. Since 1850, Earth’s temperature has risen by 2℉, and will persist, further acting as yet another indication of impending global danger. Green house gases have reached an all time high, causing high atmospheric concentrations of disruptive gases, contributing to an even worsening change in climate. Every second valuable lives continue to disappear under the mounting peril of humanity’s climate crisis, such as beloved animals like the golden toad, despite its hidden livelihood under a forest ecosystem. Unfortunately for the majority of all Earth species, soon they will die from torridity, and to contrast, the spread of warm weather only supports these six legged menaces, serving as a desirable breeding ground and reason for mobility.
As the majority of wildlife fails the test of adaptability, the most resilient, filthy pest, the cockroach, survives to see another day on our deteriorating planet Earth. Previously surviving major mass extinctions, these diabolical, cold-blooded creatures will surpass the burning of the world well beyond the time it becomes nothing short of a charred crisp. Additionally, the last eleven years present as the hottest the world has ever recorded, leading to more and more environmental hazards and rising sea levels, as well as civilizations experiencing recent weather and water crises as a result of global climate change. Falling victim to our own planet’s neglect, we see our weather patterns shift, risking agriculture output and increasing occurrences of heatwaves. As we surrender to climate catastrophe, it’s notable to remember that despite humanity facing termination, the community of worldwide cockroaches will eventually prevail.