What is a Cockroach?
The word cockroach is stemmed from the Spanish cucaracha. The cockroach is recognized by a flat oval body, long thin antennae, and a gloss black or brown leathery integument. The head is held downward, and the mouthparts are pointed to the rear instead of forward or downward as is the case of most other insects. The male often has two pairs of wings, but the female, who in some species, is wingless or appears with vestigial wings. The female creates eggs in egg cases (labeled oothecae). These are sometimes held away from her body or might be glued in protected parts. After the female deposits an egg case, the soft, white nymphs emerge. As their exoskeleton toughens, it turns brown in colour. The structure and big size (some species possess a wing spread of over 12 cm [4.7 inches]) of cockroaches have made them objects of interest in the biological laboratory.
The cockroach likes a warm, humid, dark living and is generally found thriving in tropical or other mild climates. Only a couple of species have become pests. The insect inflicts damage on more material than it digests and has a unpleasant scent. The nutrition of the roach, which should be both plant and animal products, ranges from food, paper, clothing, and books to dead insects, especially bedbugs. Insecticides could be used in roach control.
The American cockroach (species Periplaneta americana) is 30 to 50 mm long (up to about 2 inches), reddish brown, and lives out of doors or in dark, heated indoor places (e.g., basements and furnace rooms). In adult life, a time of about 1.5 years, the female creates 50 or more oothecae, each possessing about 16 eggs that hatch after 45 days. Nymphal life lasts from 11 to 14 months. The American cockroach, indigenous to tropical and subtropical America, possesses well-developed wings. However, many species are usually not good at flying.
The German cockroach (Blattella germanica), a common household pest and is sometimes incorrectly called a waterbug, is light brown with two dark stripes on the prothoracic region. The female generates the ootheca three days from mating and carries it for generally around 20 days. Because it is tiny in size (about 12 mm [less than 0.5 inch] long), this cockroach generally is brought into households in grocery bags and boxes; it has been taken across the world by ship. Three or more generations may occur yearly. This cockroach, abundant throughout the water pipes of the Croton Aqueduct in New York City, is commonly labeled the Croton bug.
The brown-banded cockroach (Supella supellectilium) is like the German cockroach but is a bit smaller. The male possesses completely developed wings and is brighter in shade than the female, whose wings are short and nonfunctional. Both sexes have two light-coloured bands over the back. The adult life span is around 200 days, and there can be two generations in a year. Eggs may be dropped in clothes, wood molding, or cracks in the floor. With the invention of heated buildings this cockroach became more common in cooler locations.
The Oriental cockroach (Blatta orientalis) is thought of as one of the most disgusting 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 like that of the American cockroach. The male possesses short, fully developed wings, while the female possesses vestigial wings. This cockroach has been carried by vehicles of commerce from its Asiatic origins to all the temperate regions.
Wood roaches are non-domestic pests. Parcoblatta pennsylvanica, the common wood cockroach, is found below logs and stones in northern latitudes. The male and female are so differing in appearance that they were originally thought to be unique species. The male, 15 to 25 mm (0.6 to 1 inch) long, possesses wings that extend beyond the abdomen; the female is smaller and has much shorter wings. Cryptocercus punctulatus eats wood with the assistance of some protozoans in its digestive tract.
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