Pictures of the "southern cockroach backpack." Photo: screenshot from Sina Weibo

Don't be concerned if you see someone walking down the street with a giant cockroach on their back; it's likely they're toting books and other things in a "southern cockroach backpack." 

The realistic-looking giant cockroach looks like it is getting a piggyback ride, but it has become the latest fashion accessory and a hot topic online. 

Two photos of the backpack cockroach posted on Sina Weibo received 129,500 likes, 20,219 comments and 7,216 reposts. 

While some netizens thought the fashion accessory was disgusting but many others were amused and amazed at the lifelike roach-pack.  

The photos inspired a poll of netizens by a blogger who asked "are there cockroaches in your home?" 

Of the 172,000 participants, 74.6 percent chose the option "Yes."

"This is not the type of fashion item that I want to see… but it's cool," said a Net user. 

"You would scare all the passengers away if you get on a bus," another commented.

Cockroaches are common in southern China and are much larger than the insect found in the country's north. According to Net users, the six- to seven-centimeter-long southern variety are often seen as an insect monster by northerners. 

"The insect is normal in my hometown in Guangdong Province, but we only carry the living cockroaches," one netizen joked.