March 18th, 2009

Cockroaches
By Justin Ringler

Appearance
Adult cockroaches grow to
be around a half an inch long when
they are full grown. The males
tend to be grayish tan with two Cockroach Stages
black stripes on the pronotum. The
female cockroaches are darker
then the males with their Cycle Egg Molting Adult
abdominal areas being more
rounded. Cockroaches start out 2-3 3–6 Up to
being white for several hours Length days hours 1 year
before they eventually turn a of
Cycle
darker color. These insects are
among the hardest insects in the
world and are able to go nearly a
month while being active without 70
60
food. Avg. Water 50
Consumption
40
Life Cycle 30
20
Cockroaches are born in 10
capsules that contain nearly thirty 0
to forty eggs. The nymphs inside 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16

splits due to pressure inside, and

molt nearly six or seven times
before reaching the adult stage.
Habitat
Cockroaches
Days are nightCycle
of the Reproductive
active insects that mostly live in
dark and damp places. The
majority of cockroaches out there
are omnivorous scavengers. The
cockroach species spans over the
entire world but the majority can
be found in the tropical regions.
Tropical species of the cockroach

1
 March 18th, 2009

have been introduced into other the middle so once the

regions and begun to rapidly
multiply. Because of their shape
they are easily able to slide into
hiding places and become
residents in the human home.
Cockroaches have been rumored to
be carriers of human diseases but
nothing has ever been proved of
this.
cockroaches enter into the trap
they become stuck and unable to
leave.
Resources
"cockroach." The Columbia
Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008.
Encyclopedia.com. 18 Mar. 2009
<http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

Overview Hahn, Jeffrey.

Cockroaches are one of the “Cockroaches” Department of
oldest groups of insects, who have Entomology. 2005. umn.edu. 3
been very successful at changing March. 2009.
to adapt to their environments. <http://www.extension.umn.edu>
These creatures have the ability to
eat almost anything organic and
are extreme scavengers. There are
about three thousand species of
cockroaches, with fifty of them
living in the United States of
America. The most common
cockroach found in the northeast is
the German cockroach, the
American cockroach, and the
brownbanded cockroach.

Ways to Get Rid of Cockroaches

Many individuals find their
homes become overrun by
infestations of cockroaches. Some
ways to get rid of cockroaches are
not to allow dirty dishes or food
accumulate in the sink over night.
Keep garbage containers outside
over night and make sure that they
are tightly sealed. Cockroaches can
be trapped and baited. Traps have
two open ends with an adhesive in