Blattaria
COCKROACHES; BLATTODEA
Life   Insecta

80x5 - 240x3 - 240x4 - 320x1 - 320x2 - 320x3 - 640x1 - 640x2
Set display option above.
Click on image to enlarge.
cockroach
© John Pickering, 2004-2023 · 0
cockroach
IDnature guides
Kinds

Overview Cockroaches are cursorial insects with five-segmented tarsi and none of the legs modified for digging or grasping. They are very fast runners, as anyone who attempts to step on one soon discovers.



Identification Key to the Families of the Blattaria:

Phylogeny
Taxonomic Category Scientific Name Common Name
Phylum Arthropoda Arthropods
Class Insecta Insects
Order Blattaria Cockroach


Geographic distribution Cockroaches are primarily tropical insects, and most of our species occur in the southern part of the United States. Some tropical species are occasionally brought into the North in shipments of bananas or other tropical fruits. The most commonly encountered cockroaches in the North are those that invade houses, where they are often serious pests. None is known to be specific vector of disease, but they feed on all sorts of things in a house. They contaminate food, they have an unpleasant odor, and their presence is often very annoying.

Natural history These insects are rather general feeders. The eggs are enclosed in capsules or oothecae, which may be deposited immediately after they are formed, carried about on the abdomen of the female until they hatch, or carried internally in a uterus or brood pouch for the full gestation period.

How to encounter Cockroaches are mainly nocturnal creatures, and night is often the best time to collect them. They may be found by searching in leaf litter or under bark, or by overturning fallen logs. Many species, including the common household pests, can be caught by putting molasses or a similar bait in the bottom of a pitfall trap placed in the ground. Insects so collected can simply be picked out of the trap.

Most nymphs and some soft-bodied adult specimens should be preserved in alcohol, but most adults can be pinned. The pin should be placed through the right tegmen, in about the middle (from front to rear) of the body. If the specimen is very soft-bodied, the body should be supported by a piece of cardboard or by pins; otherwise, it will sag at either end.

Acknowledgements Casandra Lloyd and Sara Serji, University of Georgia, Athens.

Thanks to Sabina Gupta, Denise Lim, and Dr. John Pickering for technical and web support in developing this page.



Top
Updated: 2024-12-03 06:15:53 gmt
© Designed by The Polistes Corporation