What is a Cockroach?

The word cockroach is a corruption of the Spanish cucaracha. The cockroach is recognized by a flat oval body, long threadlike antennae, and a gloss black or brown leathery integument. The head is bent downward, and the mouthparts point rearward instead of forward or downward as is the case in the majority of other insects. The male frequently has two pairs of wings, but the female, who in some species, is wingless or holds vestigial wings. The female generates eggs in egg cases (called oothecae). These are on occasion held protruding from her body or could be glued in protected parts. After the female produces an egg case, the soft, white nymphs emerge. As their exoskeleton toughens, it turns brown in hue. The geometry and huge size (particular species demonstrate a wingspan of higher than 12 cm [4.7 inches]) of cockroaches have turned them into a singular objective in the biological laboratory.

The cockroach takes a warm, humid, dark living environment and is generally found in tropical or other mild locations. Just a small number of species have become pests. The insect inflicts damage upon more material than it eats and has a disagreeable odour. The food preference of the roach, which can be both plant and animal product, can be from food, paper, clothing, and books to dead insects, including bedbugs. Insecticides can be utilized in roach control.

The American cockroach (species Periplaneta americana) is 30 to 50 mm long (up to about 2 inches), reddish brown, and lives outdoors or in dark, heated indoor places (e.g., basements and furnace rooms). In adult life, usually about 1.5 years, the female deposits 50 or more oothecae, each containing around 16 eggs that hatch after 45 days. Nymphal life lasts from 11 to 14 months. The American cockroach, originally from tropical and subtropical America, has well-developed wings. However, many species are seldom gifted flyers.

The German cockroach (Blattella germanica), a common pest in the house and is sometimes incorrectly thought of as a waterbug, is light brown with two dark stripes on the prothoracic area. The female produces the ootheca three days after mating and carries it for generally around 20 days. Because it is tiny (about 12 mm [less than 0.5 inch] long), this cockroach generally can be taken into households in grocery bags and boxes; it has been taken across the globe by boat. Three or more generations can occur yearly. This cockroach, found abundantly throughout the water pipes of the Croton Aqueduct in New York City, is now called the Croton bug.

The brown-banded cockroach (Supella supellectilium) is like the German cockroach but is a bit smaller. The male possesses fully developed wings and is paler in colour than the female, whose wings are undeveloped and nonfunctional. Both sexes have two light-coloured bands over the back. The adult life span is around 200 days, and there could be two generations annually. Eggs are be deposited in clothes, wood molding, or cracks in the floor. With the advent of heated buildings this cockroach became more common in cooler climates.

The Oriental cockroach (Blatta orientalis) is held to be one of the filthiest of household pests. It is oval, shiny black or dark brown, 25 to 30 mm (1 to 1.2 inches) long, with a life cycle resembling that of the American cockroach. The male possesses short, fully developed wings, but the female possesses vestigial wings. This cockroach has been distributed by vehicles of trade from its Asiatic origins to almost every temperate regions.

Wood roaches are wild pests. Parcoblatta pennsylvanica, the common wood cockroach, can be found beneath logs and stones in northern latitudes. The male and female are so unlike in appearance that they were first thought to be individual species. The male, 15 to 25 mm (0.6 to 1 inch) long, has wings that expand beyond the abdomen; the female is smaller and possesses much shorter wings. Cryptocercus punctulatus digests wood with the aid of certain protozoans in its digestive tract.

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