Insects · Blattodea · Ectobiidae

German Cockroach

Blattella germanica

Not Evaluated

It has not yet been assessed against the IUCN criteria. See full glossary

The most widespread cockroach in buildings worldwide, small, pale brown and with two dark lengthwise bands behind the head. It lives in kitchens, restaurants and bars, eats any organic scrap and depends entirely on heated surroundings: in temperate climates it does not survive outside buildings.

Size

11 cm – 16 cm

Diet

Omnivore

Combines animal and plant food depending on availability.

Activity

Nocturnal

Active mainly at night.

Social structure

Colony

Lives in large concentrations, often for breeding reasons.

Sighting difficulty

Unknown

GrasslandOmnivore Nocturnal Colonial Insect Grassland

Fun facts

GeneralThe hardest household cockroach to get rid of: one female produces as many as 300 offspring.
Unlike other cockroaches, the female carries the ootheca attached to her abdomen right up to the moment of hatching, which shields the eggs from insecticides and predators.
Whole populations have developed an aversion to glucose: sugary baits kill those that accept sugar and those that refuse it survive, a case of evolution observed within a few years inside people's homes.
Its allergens are a recognised cause of childhood asthma in homes with chronic infestations.
It is the most troublesome household cockroach in the world, and it owes that to three things: small size, a short life cycle and an extraordinary readiness to develop insecticide resistance.
A single female can leave between 200 and 400 descendants; at any given moment 75 to 80 % of an infestation is nymphs, which means eggs and nymphs have to be targeted too, not just adults.
Resistance is documented to pyrethroids, fipronil, clothianidin, indoxacarb and hydramethylnon.
Its droppings, cast skins and corpses contain allergens that trigger asthma, and that is its main impact on health.