German Cockroach Pest Profile
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Common Name:
German Cockroach
Scientific Name:
Blattella germanica
Order and Family:
Blattellidae, Blattellid Cockroaches
Description:
1/2-5/8" (12-16 mm). Pale to dark brown with 2 longitudinal brown marks on pronotum. Wings of adult usually conceal continuation of dark stripes from pronotum onto thorax, but these marks are visible in nymphs.
Food:
Anything edible by people or household pets.
Life Cycle:
Female carries a large, partly extruded egg capsule for 4 or more weeks, then abandons it. As many as 30 nymphs soon emerge, taking 4-6 months to develop. Several generations a year.
Habitat:
Homes, food factories, restaurants, breweries; rarely seen outdoors.
Range:
Worldwide, wherever there are frost-free storage areas for food.
Discussion:
Adhesive pads on this insect's last tarsal segment enable it to crawl on vertical surfaces as smooth as glass. It leaves an offensive odor on packages and their contents if it gets inside. Its common name "Croton Bug" derives from the fact that the insect first became a household pest in 1890, when water from the Croton Reservoir began augmenting New York City's municipal supply.
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