PestPedia: Cockroaches
- General Cockroaches
- American Cockroaches
- Brown-Banded Cockroaches
- German Cockroaches
- Oriental Cockroaches
Cockroaches-General
Cockroaches are among the most important pests of households and commercial establishments. Not only is their mere presence a nuisance, but they are known to be capable of carrying many common disease pathogens as well as causing allergic reactions in many people. Of the approximately 4,000 living species of cockroaches in the world, about 70 occur in the United States.
One of the oldest insects — fossil remains dates back 200 million years.
Crawl around on six legs, have wings and two antennae.
Like dark, damp places with a plentiful food supply; hide during the day in warm, dark places, such as under sinks, behind dishwashers, stoves and refrigerators, and inside cupboards.
Feed on a variety of foods, especially starchy and sugary materials, including book bindings, photographic film, linens, leather goods, and numerous food items; usually forage at night.
Can survive a month or more without food, but less than two weeks without water.
Have an acrid odor that may permeate items with which they come in contact.
Can transmit bacteria and organisms responsible for diseases in humans including food poisoning, cholera, dysentery, salmonellosis, and strep.
A study by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a report in the New England Journal of Medicine indicate that exposure to cockroach allergens is a major health concern for asthmatic children.
Under optimum conditions, cockroaches can produce two million offspring in one year, with an average breeding season resulting in 350,000 offspring.
Found around the world. Two species are prevalent in the United States, the American cockroach, and the German cockroach.
The American cockroach has reddish-brown wings and light markings on its thorax and reaches lengths of up to 1.5 inches.
The German cockroach is between one-half and five-eighths inches long and is light brown with two dark stripes down its back.
Pest Facts: American Cockroaches
Description: The American cockroach is the largest of the house-infesting cockroaches.
Pest Facts:
Color: Reddish-brown, with a yellowish figure 8 pattern on the back of the head
Legs: Six
Shape: Oval
Size: 2 inches
Antennae: Yes
Flying: Yes
Region: All 50 States
Habits: American cockroaches are found in food processing areas and food storage areas, as well as other types of buildings. They are active when the temperature is 70 degrees or higher, but they can survive lower temperatures with the right conditions.
Habitat: American cockroaches are often found in sewers and basements, particularly around pipes and drains.
Threats: Cockroaches have been reported to spread at least 33 kinds of bacteria, six kinds of parasitic worms, and at least seven other kinds of human pathogens. They can pick up germs on the spines of their legs and bodies as they crawl through decaying matter or sewage and then carry these into food or onto food surfaces. Germs that cockroaches eat from decaying matter or sewage are protected while in their bodies and may remain infective for several weeks longer than if they had been exposed to cleaning agents, rinse water, or just sunlight and air. Recent medical studies have shown that cockroach allergens cause lots of allergic reactions in inner-city children. They were even shown to cause asthma in children. These allergens build up in deposits of droppings, secretions, cast skins, and dead bodies of roaches.
Prevention: Good sanitation and habitat reduction, along with vacuuming, surveillance, a baiting program, and some sealing of cracks can usually quickly reduce or eliminate a cockroach population.
Pest Facts: Brownbanded Cockroaches
Description:
Brown-banded cockroaches get their name from the two lighter bands they have across their dark brownish bodies. In addition to the distinctive banding, males have full wings, which reach beyond the tip of their rather pointed abdomens, but females have underdeveloped wings, much shorter than their broad, rounded abdomens. The lighter band markings are much more distinct in nymphs than in adults of either sex.
Pest Facts:
Color: Brown, with pronounced banding across wings
Legs: Six
Shape: Oval
Size: 1/2 inch
Antennae: Yes
Flying: Yes
Region: All 50 States
Habits: Male brown-banded cockroaches have been observed to fly indoors. Among cockroach species, brown-banded cockroaches have the most distinctions between sexes. Females have larger abdomen and shorter wings than males. Brownbanded cockroaches often hide their egg cases in or under furniture.
Habitat: Within a room, these roaches tend to prefer warmer, drier, and higher locations than do any of the other urban pest roaches. They are often found in upper cabinets or in rooms other than kitchens (food preparation areas) or bathrooms.
Threats: Cockroaches have been reported to spread at least 33 kinds of bacteria, six kinds of parasitic worms, and at least seven other kinds of human pathogens. They can pick up germs on the spines of their legs and bodies as they crawl through decaying matter or sewage and then carry these into food or onto food surfaces. Germs that cockroaches eat from decaying matter or sewage are protected while in their bodies and may remain infective for several weeks longer than if they had been exposed to cleaning agents, rinse water, or just sunlight and air. Recent medical studies have shown that cockroach allergens cause lots of allergic reactions in inner-city children. They were even shown to cause asthma in children. These allergens build up in deposits of droppings, secretions, cast skins, and dead bodies of roaches.
Prevention: Good sanitation and habitat reduction, along with vacuuming, surveillance, a baiting program, and some sealing of cracks can usually quickly reduce or eliminate a cockroach population.
Pest Facts: German Cockroaches
Description: The German cockroach is by far the most important and usually the most common of the cockroaches.
Pest Facts:
Color: Light brown to tan, with two dark, almost parallel stripes located on their backs, just behind their heads
Legs: Six
Shape: Oval
Size: 1/2 to 5/8 inch
Antennae: Yes
Flying: Yes
Region: All 50 States
Habits: German cockroaches can be found throughout structures but show a preference for warm and humid places. They are usually found in kitchens and secondarily in bathrooms, but infestations often occur in rooms where people eat and drink.
Habitat: German cockroaches prefer to live in cracks and crevices near food sources and spend 75% of their time in such harborages. German cockroaches prefer to live close to sources of food and water, hence their affinity for residential and commercial kitchen environments.
Threats: Cockroaches have been reported to spread at least 33 kinds of bacteria, six kinds of parasitic worms, and at least seven other kinds of human pathogens. They can pick up germs on the spines of their legs and bodies as they crawl through decaying matter or sewage and then carry these into food or onto food surfaces. Germs that cockroaches eat from decaying matter or sewage are protected while in their bodies and may remain infective for several weeks longer than if they had been exposed to cleaning agents, rinse water, or just sunlight and air. Medical studies have shown that cockroach allergens cause lots of allergic reactions, especially in children. They were even shown t cause asthma in children. These allergens build up in deposits of droppings, secretions, cast skins, and dead bodies of roaches.
Prevention: Good sanitation and habitat reduction, along with vacuuming, surveillance, and baiting program, and some sealing of cracks can usually reduce or eliminate a cockroach problem. The reduction of moisture sources, such as leaking pipes, is also helpful.
Pest Facts: Oriental Cockroaches
Description: Oriental Cockroaches, Blatta orientalis (L.), are large very dark (almost black, but sometimes dark reddish-brown), shiny cockroaches which live in sewers and similar wet, decaying organic matter. They are sometimes called water bugs because they come out of drains, and black beetle cockroaches because of their smooth, dark bodies. Males are about 1 inch long, with wings that cover only about 3/4 of their abdomen; females are about 1 1/4 inch long and have only short stubs of wing pads.
Pest Facts:
Color: Dark brown, almost black
Legs: Six
Shape: Oval
Size: 1 inch
Antennae: Yes
Flying: No
Region: United States
Habits: This species of cockroach often travels through sewer pipes. It survives on filth and enjoys temperatures from 68 to 84 degrees. This is a cooler temperature than that preferred by other cockroach species.
Habitat: Oriental cockroaches are often found in sewers and will enter structures through drains. They find indoor harborage in basements and crawl spaces. They can also be found in leaf piles and firewood outdoors.
Threats: Cockroaches have been reported to spread at least 33 kinds of bacteria, six kinds of parasitic worms, and at least seven other kinds of human pathogens. They can pick up germs on the spines of their legs and bodies as they crawl through decaying matter or sewage and then carry these into food or onto food surfaces. Germs that cockroaches eat from decaying matter or sewage are protected while in their bodies and may remain infective for several weeks longer than if they had been exposed to cleaning agents, rinse water, or just sunlight and air. Recent medical studies have shown that cockroach allergens cause lots of allergic reactions in inner-city children. They were even shown to cause asthma in children. These allergens build up in deposits of droppings, secretions, cast skins, and dead bodies of roaches.
Prevention: Good sanitation and habitat reduction, along with vacuuming, surveillance, a baiting program, and some sealing of cracks can usually quickly reduce or eliminate a cockroach population.