The German cockroach is the most problematic roach species in Florida; it breeds and lives in indoor spaces and causes health risks due to food contamination and allergies.
German cockroaches can become a problem in almost any type of building where food is stored and prepared, including residences, schools, restaurants, hospitals, warehouses, and apartments. They ruin paper and fabric goods, spread bacteria, and leave stains and bad smells on the surfaces they touch.
Even worse, the German cockroach also reproduces the fastest out of any residential cockroach species. Their entire reproductive cycle, from egg to fertilized adult, is under 2 months. This rapid growth makes managing and controlling roach infestations a challenging DIY task.
A better method for getting rid of cockroaches is to enlist the help of a local pest control company. Professional exterminators can safely and efficiently exterminate roaches once and for all, no matter where they are hiding.
WHAT DO GERMAN COCKROACHES LOOK LIKE?
Recognizable by their tan to light brown coloring, adult German cockroaches typically measure between 11 to 16 millimeters in length. Their body structure is flat and oval-shaped, with six spiny legs. Protruding from their heads are two long antennae, each matching the length of their body. The most defining characteristic of the German cockroach is the presence of two dark vertical stripes behind their head.
Adult German cockroaches are also equipped with fully developed wings, allowing them to fly short distances. However, this capability is rarely utilized and they prefer to scurry on the ground when finding food sources or escaping predators.
When reproducing, female roaches will feature a leathery and bean-shaped ootheca, which are distinctive capsules containing up to 48 eggs. The ootheca is located behind the abdomen and offers protection to the developing eggs from any external threats. More importantly, the presence of an ootheca is a way to tell if cockroaches in the building are multiplying.
Newborn cockroaches, known as nymphs, are essentially wingless replicas of the adults. The nymphs are born white in color and change to brown within a few hours. They will shed their exoskeleton five or six times throughout their lifespan, with each stage being known as an instar.
A German cockroach typically enjoys a lifespan of five to seven months. Within this period, a female can produce approximately seven to eight egg cases, each resulting in an average of 350 offspring. Within a year, a single female roach can potentially spawn tens of thousands of descendants and contribute significantly to the size of an infestation.
WHERE DO GERMAN COCKROACHES LIVE?
German cockroaches can be found almost anywhere in the world due to their adaptability, but they thrive in areas with warmer temperatures. Unlike some pests that can live in a range of outdoor settings, these cockroaches are notably less inclined to be outside and struggle to survive away from human activity. This dependency is primarily due to their need for warmth.
Their preference for humid and sheltered conditions makes them frequent under stoves, dishwashers, and other appliances. However, they are not confined to just these areas. German cockroaches have been known to infest other parts of a house, including bedrooms, where they can establish colonies amongst clothing and inside of closets.
In fact, while they tend to be associated with wretched and filthy environments beyond saving, even clean homes can have roaches if the right conditions are present. Any building with food, water, and shelter may find German roaches scurrying about, particularly if treatment is delayed upon an initial sighting.
When infesting a building, cockroaches do not construct physical nests like ants or wasps. Instead of a traditional nest, hordes of roaches shift around in response to the availability of food. If a food source becomes scarce, the group will likely migrate in search of new sustenance.
WHAT DO GERMAN COCKROACHES EAT?
German cockroaches are omnivores and are primarily attracted to the wide range of available human foods. They are particularly fond of starches, grease, sweets, and meat products. This diet makes household trash and discarded scraps a principal source of nutrients for these pests.
Being opportunistic scavengers as well, German cockroaches will sustain themselves on pet food, rotten fruit, and even unconventional items such as leather, book bindings, and other dead cockroaches. Despite this resilience, a German roach still requires consistent access to a water source. They are able to survive a month without food but perish within two weeks in the absence of water, which they may receive via bathrooms, leaky pipes, or faulty refrigerators.
Their feeding behavior is largely nocturnal, with peak activities occurring twice during the night. Researchers observe the first peak between 7:00 PM and 10:00 PM, followed by a second peak between 4:00 AM and 5:00 AM. This nocturnal nature makes them even more difficult to control because they may go unseen for the majority of the day.
DAMAGE CAUSED BY GERMAN COCKROACHES
The damage that German cockroaches cause to the structure of a home is rather minimal compared to the devastation of wood-destroying insects like carpenter ants or termites. However, this does not mean they are harmless. While cockroaches do not directly consume the wood of a house, they are known to feed on adhesives used in building materials.
Household items such as drapes, letters, books, wallpaper, and even certain types of clothing or furniture can also become targets for these pests. Their omnivorous diet means they are not particularly discerning about what they consume, so long as they can chew through it.
When looking into home damage from cockroaches, the larger concern tends to be the sheer volume of insects that come about if they are not treated immediately. Hundreds of cockroaches swarming between walls can disrupt appliances and insulation. Their oils and excrement can also damage paint, wood, and drywall if left alone for long enough.
ARE GERMAN COCKROACHES AGGRESSIVE?
German cockroaches are not typically aggressive towards humans. They do not naturally seek out human interaction nor do they purposefully bite people. If startled, a roach will simply scurry into hiding.
In situations where their populations become exceptionally large and food sources become scarce, German cockroaches might resort to biting humans. These instances are rare and occur when there are food scraps under fingernails or elsewhere on the body that attract the cockroaches.
DO GERMAN COCKROACHES CARRY DISEASE?
German Cockroaches are known carriers of harmful microorganisms, including at least 33 types of bacteria, six varieties of parasitic worms, and seven other types of pathogens transmittable to humans. Among the diseases carried by German cockroaches, two of the most concerning are salmonella and E. coli.
Salmonella, a bacteria commonly associated with food poisoning, can lead to symptoms such as diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps. E. coli, another bacteria, is known to cause severe gastrointestinal illness, with symptoms ranging from mild to life-threatening. The transmission of these pathogens typically occurs through the contamination of food and surfaces where cockroaches have been present.
Their droppings, shed skins, and secretions can also exacerbate allergies and asthma, particularly in sensitive individuals or those with compromised immune systems. Children and the elderly are the most likely to have allergic responses to cockroaches, so it is imperative to seek extermination services if these pests are found nearby. Only professional treatment solutions are sure to stop the risk of disease from spreading.
HOW TO DETECT GERMAN COCKROACHES
Signs of a German cockroach infestation include:
• Seeing live cockroaches scurrying across the floor or on walls and ceilings.
• Finding cockroach droppings, which resemble black pepper or coffee grounds.
• Oily stains that look like dark spots or smears along walls and in corners
• A musty, unpleasant smell that is especially apparent with large infestations.
• Finding shed skins and insect body parts from dead roaches.
• Seeing eggs or egg cases in areas such as cracks, crevices, or behind appliances.
HOW TO PREVENT GERMAN COCKROACHES
To help prevent German cockroach issues the following steps should be taken:
• Regularly clean all rooms of the building which contain food, making sure no crumbs, grease, or oils are left behind
• Remove water sources by keeping areas dry and fixing leaks in plumbing
• Organize and remove clutter that may serve as hiding places for a cockroach colony
• Vacuum carpeted floors to ensure no crumbs are left behind
• Close garbage lids and take out the trash regularly
• Seal off gaps, holes, and crevices with caulking material to remove potential entry points for roaches
• Seek extermination services from a local pest control company
HOW WE TREAT FOR GERMAN COCKROACHES
Cockroaches are a top pest control issue and can prove virtually impossible for home and business owners to solve on their own. Ending a German cockroach infestation typically requires proper species identification, locating and destroying the nest, and applying specialized products.
As such, it is not advisable for property owners to attempt to eradicate a cockroach infestation without assistance from a professional pest control provider.
