Appearance
The body is flat, oval, from 4 mm to 9.5 cm long (and more). The head is triangular or heart-shaped, flat. Gnawing mouth organs. Cockroaches have strong jaws dotted with chitinous teeth. The eyes are large. Sometimes absent (often in cave forms). Antennae are elongated. The elytra are dense; the wings are membranous, fold under the elytra at rest. The elytra and wings are often shortened or completely absent.
Behavior
Cockroaches are thermophilic and hygrophilous, very mobile insects, predominantly nocturnal; during the day they hide under stones or fallen leaves, in cracks on the soil surface, in rodent holes, under the bark of stumps and dying trees. The winged ones can fly into the light at night. They feed on plant and animal debris.
Cockroaches are among the most hardy insects. Some cockroaches can survive for up to a month without food, as well as hold their breath for 45 minutes and slow their heart rate.
Cockroaches reproduce sexually and parthenogenetically, but in order to start breeding, the female must mate with the male at least once. Modern cockroaches lay eggs protected by a special capsule - ooteca, which is sometimes carried by the female and sticks out at the end of the abdomen. Some species are viviparous; cockroaches of the genus Cryptocercus and some other complex parenting behavior. The transformation is incomplete; larvae of wingless species are hardly distinguishable from adults; develop from several months (red cockroach) to 4 years (black cockroach), molting 5-8 times during this period. Many types of cockroaches can fly.
Most cockroaches are warm and moisture-loving insects. Optimal conditions for them: temperature 28-32 ° C and relative humidity 70-90%. Tropical species die at temperatures below 20 and above 35. Several hundred cockroaches can live in a dark terrarium measuring 50x50x30 cm if there are enough shelters. Which can be crafted from flower pots, bark or egg packaging. The soil used is a 50 mm layer of moistened peat, fallen leaves or soil mixed with sand. The lid can be made of metal or plastic fine mesh. You can leave the aquarium without covering at all. If cockroaches can climb on a vertical smooth surface, it is better to lubricate the walls of the enclosure around the edges with petroleum jelly. In this case, cockroaches will not be able to get out even from an open terrarium.
Cockroaches can feed on almost any organic material (eg cat and dog food, bread), but they also need a significant amount of fruits and vegetables (not too much so that the debris does not mold in the enclosure). A container of water is not needed. It is necessary to clean the cockroach enclosure before the unpleasant odor appears. Orange slices can be a good solution for supplying moisture to cockroaches, which, as well. help to eliminate unpleasant odors. It is better to use dry food, such as fish flakes.
Cockroaches can eat their smaller counterparts, which helps control the population when overcrowded. Cockroaches can host microscopic mites that do no harm to them.
Males are smaller, thinner and have eight abdominal segments, the last of which has two additional palps. Females have six abdominal segments. The wings of males are longer than those of females.
Mating begins after mutual examination with palps and raising of the wings. Throughout the entire process, the cockroaches remain linked to each other. One cockroach species reproduces by parthenogenesis.
Adult females make from one to fifteen clutches of 16-45 eggs each. Inside the body, the egg shell is soft, white; in air it turns brown and hardens. Nymphs emerge from eggs within 2-12 weeks after laying. Immediately after hatching, the nymphs shed their embryotic skin.
Most species store their eggs in an ooteca, where nymphs hatch, which also remain inside the mother's body until their chitinous cover hardens, and in some cases even longer.
Other species also retain their eggs in the ooteca, but lay them several hours before hatching.
Cockroach species that lay their eggs weeks before hatching hide clutches in deep crevices.
Nymphs that reach 6-12 mm in length can live with their parents. Depending on the species, they reach sexual maturity in 5-11 stages. The whole process can take 50-275 days.
04.12.2015
Domestic cockroaches belong to the so-called synanthropic species, the survival of which in our latitudes is impossible outside the human dwelling. Of the 4000 species, only 300 are synanthropic. The most popular species will be discussed.
About cockroaches
The right temperature and the constant availability of food have attracted these insects to human homes for a very long time. Their rapid resettlement occurred for two reasons:
- Travel and migration accessibility. At that moment, when human migrations became generally available, their travels of a new kind can be brought in a suitcase or hat box.
- Breeding by amateurs. Another factor was the human fascination with exotic insects. This is how the American moon cockroach and other species raised by amateurs in terrariums came to our area.
The largest cockroach in the world is the rhinoceros. This insect is 8 centimeters long and weighs about 30 grams. His homeland is North Queensland (Australia).
Other authors consider the largest Madagascar cockroach. Its average length is 6 cm, and large individuals can reach 10 cm in terrarium conditions. Except for the sizes. These insects are unique in that they are able to make special hissing sounds, trying to scare a rival or predator, and also when trying to attract a female. The African cockroach is its erroneous name among the people.
All types of domestic cockroaches cannot survive in cold winters. They have a number of characteristics specific to each species. How many species of these insects can be found in our latitudes, one can only guess. Despite the different origins, the way cockroaches look allows you to accurately identify any of their species:
- Incomplete development cycle. Nymphs emerge from cockroach eggs (this is the name of the cockroach larva), which practically do not differ in appearance from adults - adults. Small cockroaches shed their chitinous covers several times during their growth.
- All species are distinguished by their amazing omnivorousness, provided by unique gregarine microorganisms, which are part of the normal microflora of the cockroach intestine. Cockroaches eat paper, wallpaper glue, and other indigestible delicacies.
- The presence of edema is another distinguishing feature of these insects. This special education reliably protects cockroach eggs from mechanical and chemical influences.
- A flat body, fast movement speed and nocturnal lifestyle allow insects to remain unnoticed for a long time in a human home.
- Flying cockroaches. Most of these insect species are only able to glide on their reduced wings. The only truly flying species does not occur in our latitudes
- The dependence of life expectancy on the availability of food and water. How long cockroaches live depends on the food base. Usually, the life expectancy of redheads ranges from 9-10 months, and large black cockroaches live not a few months less. The insects spend most of this time in the larval stage. Without water, these insects can live no longer than 7 days.
The white cockroach is an insect that has just emerged from its old shell after molting.... Few people know what domestic cockroaches look like when cut after molting. But sometimes in closed populations, albino cockroaches, which are not very viable, can be born. The molting process is clearly visible in the video:
Cockroach species living in houses
Below we list the main species of cockroaches found in our homes. Some of them are frequent guests of our apartments, while others are extremely rare there.
Redheads
The ginger cockroach is a common inhabitant of apartment buildings, hostels, catering establishments, as well as trains and planes. They are called Prusaks in Russia, although Central Asia is the homeland of this species. The lifespan of a cockroach of this species without food is up to 50 days. The length of an adult insect is up to one and a half centimeters. Females appear larger and less mobile than males. Adult Prussians have wings and are able to glide. All stages are very sensitive to low temperatures and die at -5 ° C. During her life (this is about a year), the female is able to form up to 9 ootheca. The number of young individuals hatched from each of them depends on the living conditions of the colony and the supply of food resources to it. Nymphs molt several times and by 2 months are already capable of bearing offspring. As the most convenient, this type chooses trash cans, refrigerators, sometimes mattresses of beds or storage areas for food. It is known that these cockroaches are able to survive in high radiation conditions. They easily tolerate doses 15 times higher than those that can kill a person. In a red cockroach, the main factors that can limit its lifespan are the availability of water and air temperature.
Black
Until recently, the black cockroach was not inferior in number to the red one. Black indoor cockroaches can survive without food for 90 days. The female is capable of giving up to 30 offspring in her life. They prefer to live in damp basements, in attics where central heating takes place, as well as in apartments on the lower floors and low-rise apartment buildings. These large cockroaches (the length of an adult insect can reach 5 cm) are capable of frightening with their size and frightening appearance. In the wild, they are found only in the young regions of our country, as well as in the countries of Central Asia.
Eastern peoples at one time considered these insects to be talismans of their homes and when moving they took them with them.
When wet, these cockroaches are capable of digesting shoe leather, soap, hard cardboard. If food runs out, the larvae from the edema can come out after 5 years if conditions are favorable for them. From the eggs of this species, white cockroaches hatch in the apartment, which darken as their chitinous shell strengthens.
American
The American cockroach of the periplanet is another cosmopolitan. Moved to us from the New World. These domestic cockroaches are similar to red ones, but differ from them in more aggressiveness. Do cockroaches bite too? These - yes, they are highly aggressive and can bite children and pets while sleeping. Periplanets are flying cockroaches and are capable of gliding over long distances. Their length reaches 5 cm.
In the edema of the female, there are from 12 to 15 eggs, the first nymphs emerge from it 20 days after discarding. In total, these insects live up to 600 days, of which 400 are in the adult stage of the imago.
Under favorable conditions, the female can produce 2 ootheca per week. In total, it gives up to 90 ootheca in its life. Unfavorable conditions can stretch the life of this cockroach up to 4 years. The hatched babies are cared for by several females.
In this species, parthenogenetic reproduction is possible without the participation of males.
Turkmen
The Turkmen cockroach is a medium-sized and light brown insect. Its size reaches up to 3 cm in length. It mainly lives in warm countries of Asia. This species is considered to be fast growing. It develops within 4 months. Favorite places in apartments are dirty and old floors. In apartments, they eat fruit and are very fond of dry food for your household.
Sewer
These black insects come from sewer pipes in search of food. They are happy to feed on food waste in garbage cans, and are capable of carrying many dangerous diseases (for example, helminthiasis or dysentery). They are able to move not only through sewer pipes, but also inside the water supply system, if there is no water in it, as well as through ventilation shafts.
Harmful neighbors
All varieties of cockroaches are highly unwanted guests of our apartments and houses. It is important to know, in the house, how they look and what they eat, in order to choose an effective system for dealing with them.
By turning off the water, removing food waste as far as possible from our homes, you can reduce the likelihood of these unpleasant neighbors in it and make our life more comfortable without them.
The roots come from warm African latitudes and were transported by man to all continents. Almost all types of cockroaches feel great in our homes, despite numerous attempts to get rid of pests. Cockroaches are very tenacious creatures, they can withstand radiation exposure ten times higher than the lethal dose for humans.
The insect's body is designed in such a way that it can digest leather, paper and even wood, thanks to the plates located in the stomach and helping to process food.
The insect can survive most of the low-toxic poisons if there is access to water. Even in the absence of food, insects can live for up to two months, thanks to their ability to slow down their metabolism. The only thing of all types of cockroaches is frost, they are cold-blooded, therefore, at sub-zero temperatures they freeze to death.
Cockroaches not only disgust the apartment owners, but can bring serious troubles, cockroaches can carry such diseases: typhus, tuberculosis, dysentery, hepatitis and many other diseases, and pests can also carry larvae of worms and other unpleasant things on their paws.
Furniture cockroach
Furniture cockroaches were discovered in Russia about 100 years ago. From the name it is clear that these insects like to hide in furniture. These cockroaches are often seen in city libraries, furniture shops and bedrooms.
The characteristic difference between these cockroaches is their light color, as seen in the photo below.
American cockroach
His homeland is Africa, but he was brought to America and he perfectly took root in human homes, where the optimal air temperature is constantly maintained and food is abundant.
The size of the insect does not exceed 3 cm and the reproduction rate is inferior to the Prusaks we are used to. The American cockroach was able to move to Europe and even took root in many countries with relatively warm climates.
Vietnamese cockroach (Shelfordella tartara)
This species lives in the southern regions of Russia and is known under such names "Turkestan cockroach" and "Central Asian cockroach". This cockroach is quite rare and lives mainly on the street. Adults reach 2.5 cm, are able to jump far, helping with their wings. The cockroach has a dark abdomen and a yellow cephalothorax, which is clearly visible in the photo.
Exotic cockroaches
These cockroaches are specially bred by lovers of exotic animals. Some exotic cockroach species grow up to 10 cm in length. Some keep cockroaches in the house as a pet, but many breed large cockroaches to feed various pets (snakes, frogs, lizards, fish), and do not require special care, so many prefer not to buy dubious food, but grow on their own and be sure of its freshness.
Dead head cockroach (Blaberus craniifer)
This species lives in the tropics of South and Central America. It got its name from a pattern resembling an ugly mask, located on the head of an insect. It is also called the Cuban cockroach. Cockroaches grow up to 8 cm, the chitinous shell is black matte, the cephalothorax is light with a black pattern in the middle, as can be seen in the photo.
The Cuban cockroach can fly well, and its wingspan reaches 10 cm. In case of danger, the cockroach releases a pungent odor that does not disappear for a long time. Life expectancy is about one and a half years.
Rhino cockroach (Macropanesthia rhinoceros)
The Australian cockroach spends most of its time underground and is often called the giant burrowing rhino cockroach for its ability to dig deep holes. At night, the cockroach crawls out to the surface in search of food, they feed on fruits, leaves and do not disdain carrion.
An adult grows up to 9 cm in length and weighs up to 40 grams, in the photo there is a female and a male rhino cockroach. The Australian cockroach is often found among lovers of exotic cockroach species.
Chess cockroach (Therea bernhardti)
This species lives in India, during the day insects hide in fallen leaves, and at night they go out in search of food, like most representatives of the species. Cockroaches are black in color, but have staggered white spots on their backs. Chess cockroaches are long-livers and can live in good conditions for up to 5 years.
These cockroaches love high humidity in the region of 70-80% and warm air 25-30 ° c.
Madagascar hissing cockroach
The most common representative of cockroaches found in insectaries. This particular species has come to the liking of lovers of exotic animals. Unpretentious, quiet and requires no skills to maintain. The dimensions of this giant reach 10 cm, and their main trump card is the hiss in case of danger, which is created when the insect abruptly releases air from special spiracles.
The optimal conditions for keeping is 23-30 ° degrees, and the humidity should be around 60%.
Egyptian cockroach turtle (Polyphaga aegyptiaca)
The cockroach has a rounded body, reminiscent of a tortoise shell, with a maximum size of 4.5 cm. The shell is of black shiny color, covered with transverse plates.
Habitat Central Asia, Caucasus, feeds on leaves, animal remains, feces. The life expectancy of the Egyptian cockroach is 4 years.
Green banana cockroach (Panchlora nivea)
A bright species of cockroaches that fly well. They have taken root in banana plantations and feed on leaves. This species was discovered quite recently and did not have time to gain popularity among cockroach lovers.
The homeland of the cockroach is the Florida forests and cuba. The optimum temperature for this species is 27 degrees Celsius. The size of the cockroach is small and reaches 2.5 cm.
Forest cockroach (Ectobius lapponicus)
It lives in wooded areas, feeds on tree leaves, carrion, plants. It hides in the roots of trees and under the leaves.
There are a huge number of cockroach species, there is even a Japanese pest. Almost all types of cockroaches are harmless to humans and cannot bite through the skin.
From time immemorial, various types of cockroaches have lived in human dwellings. Once the insect was considered a symbol of wealth, now it is an unpleasant guest, causing a lot of trouble and spreading the infection. What attracts them to our apartments? The answer is obvious. This is the warmth and mass of food. In winter, they cannot survive in natural conditions, and it is problematic to find food.
Any cockroach living next to a person has a whole set of features characteristic of any of the species:
- The cockroach goes through three stages of development, a larva emerges from the egg, which turns into an adult insect - an imago;
- Outwardly, adults and larvae are similar;
- Cockroach females have edema for carrying eggs;
- The mustache helps the cockroach not get lost in space;
- The insect is capable of gnawing and digesting any food;
- For a long time they can simply be ignored due to the high speed of movement, the ability to hide in cracks and crevices, and high activity, mainly at night.
How to recognize a cockroach
In nature, there are a great many insects and a person who encounters a cockroach for the first time may not recognize the enemy "by sight." How do you know that this is a cockroach? So, the characteristic features of the insect:
- Length of an oblong or oval body 4mm -10 cm;
- The head is not round, but flat, in the shape of a heart or triangle;
- The mouth apparatus of the gnawing type is covered with a shield.
The photo shows the types of cockroaches that may be in the apartment.
Where do cockroaches come from?
Of the five thousand varieties of cockroaches in houses and apartments on the territory of Russia, only a few of them settle. Why do they choose your apartment for living? In each case, the reason is individual:
- Dishes that are periodically left in the sink overnight;
- Migrating individuals from neighbors;
- Accumulated garbage and food waste;
- A cockroach brought from the street or from guests and much more.
After at least one cockroach has entered the room, it is highly likely that their number will soon increase significantly. Often, pests start in clean rooms, do not forget that cockroaches are omnivorous and can even feed on paper.
How to find out that cockroaches are in the house
It is not possible to detect pests if there are a few more of them at once. The neighborhood will become noticeable when they already begin to manage your kitchen, like at home. There are signs by which you can determine the presence of cockroaches in the room:
- On the tiles, in the corners of the walls, on the furniture, black dots are visible - these are insect feces;
- Scan cracks, tiny crevices and all corners for cockroach eggs;
- Cockroaches are sometimes accompanied by a specific smell.
Identify the type of cockroach
Cockroaches are the most common synatropic insects. But among the several thousand species, not all of them live at home. Most often in our homes there is a red cockroach, less often - a black and American cockroach. In the south and in the tropics, other species wander into houses, but they cannot be called synatropic, rather they are random guests. Since the home cockroach looks differently, depending on the variety, we give a short description and photo of each of the common species.
Types of cockroaches in the apartment (photo)
Prusak - red cockroach
We examined the common types of cockroaches living in the apartment, but it is possible that you may come across a specimen that is not on this list.
Watch the video of the Madagascar hissing cockroach
Cockroaches are one of the very unpleasant problems for every tenant of an apartment or house. No one will be thrilled to see an "intruder" in their kitchen or any other room. Some people believe that these insects are of only one type. However, in fact, there are different types of domestic cockroaches that can be found in people's homes.
They received a similar name precisely because of living purely in apartments or private houses of a person. In a natural environment, they are not able to maintain viability. This is especially true for the climate of Russia and other countries of the former USSR, which often experience severe winters or hot summers. One way or another, but it is worth knowing about the existence of the varieties themselves.
Common features
All types of cockroaches in the apartment, the photos of which will be presented below, are insects with an incomplete transformation cycle.
This means that in the process of their development, they go through the following stages:
- Egg.
- Larva (nymph).
- Adult (imago).
The larvae immediately after "birth" very much resemble full-fledged insects, but are smaller in size. With each subsequent molt, they grow and reach sexual maturity in about 6-10 weeks. Despite this, insects from the first minutes of their lives give a person a lot of inconvenience.
It is interesting to know that more than 60-70% of the population of all cockroaches in the house are exactly the maturing representatives of the colony.
In addition, it is worth noting several common features that are characteristic of almost all types of cockroaches that live in human dwellings:
- The female bears eggs in a special capsule - ootheca. It resembles a leather handbag in which.
- The hypersensitive antennae remain the main organ of touch for pests. Thanks to them, the cockroach is looking for water, food and individuals of the opposite sex.
- The pest has a gnawing type of mouth apparatus for processing sufficiently coarse food. Some of the species of these insects bite. Little children are most often their victims. Cockroaches feed on the rim of the lips and the delicate skin of babies' earlobes.
- The locomotor apparatus of the pests is represented by three pairs of running legs, on which you can find a variety of claws, hooks and other devices for moving on almost any type of surface.
- All varieties of domestic cockroaches, the photo of which will be presented below, have a flattened body, which allows them to penetrate into narrow cracks and hide from humans.
- All insects are more nocturnal. It is in the late hours of the day that they show maximum activity.
Despite the similarities, each species of a particular insect has several differences. They are mainly represented by visual features in the color and size of the insect. The general principles of existence and development are characteristic of everyone.
Red Prusak is the most popular species
Among the large variety of cockroaches, the most common and often found is the red-headed species of this insect. The people call him a Prusak.
He lives in a variety of rooms where a person works or lives:
- Country houses, summer cottages, ordinary buildings.
- Catering establishments (if they do not comply with the rules of sanitation).
- In multi-storey buildings, people's apartments, the private sector.
Most often, this insect can be found under kitchen furniture, tiles, behind the refrigerator, and in other secluded places. The main feature of the pest development is the need for water availability.
Black beetle
Unlike his red-haired counterpart, he often causes fear, rather than disgust, in most housewives. Its rich black color can scare a grown man too. This representative lives in basements, around garbage cans on the street and in other unfavorable places for an ordinary person. Climbing into an apartment, he is a carrier of a number of bacteria.
An interesting fact remains that the black cockroach never rises above the 4-5 floors. Therefore, residents of basement rooms often suffer from its activity, who find such a "guest" mainly behind the stove, refrigerator or in the trash bin.
Despite these features, the black cockroach still relatively rarely becomes a roommate for Russians. Red Prusak maintains absolute leadership in this regard.
American variety
Overseas counterpart of black and red insects. He himself comes from Africa, from where he came to the United States with food containers. In terms of its characteristics, it is somewhat reminiscent of a Prusak, but it has a flatter body and a high speed of movement.
Under natural conditions, these insects live in the tropical forests of hot Africa, however, they have perfectly adapted to the conditions of human dwellings. Show a high degree of aggressiveness. Can bite pets and sleeping people.
In Russia, this type of insect is not very common.
Furniture cockroach
The main feature of the furniture cockroach is its preference for food rich in starch. That is why, unlike the traditional habitats of the corresponding insects, it is more often seen in the nooks and crannies of dusty cabinets, where there are old books that it feeds on.
Its body is more rounded in shape and has characteristic brown stripes, as well as transparent wings.
There are also quite exotic species of insects that are extremely rare in the homes of Russians. These include the Turkmen and Egyptian cockroaches. They remain infrequent guests of people's apartments, but mainly live where livestock are kept (stables, etc.).
Obviously, the types of cockroaches in the apartment are very different. Despite all this, their appearance is a sign of unsanitary conditions. When spreading insects in the house, you need them.
If you want to contemplate the behavior of all types of cockroaches, thereby expanding your horizons, be sure to check out this video: