COCKROACHES

There are more than 4,000 species of cockroaches. The United States is home to about 69 species, but only about 22 species cause pest problems in homes or businesses. German, American, Brown-Banded, and Oriental cockroaches are the most common cockroach pest species in the United States. Cockroaches reproduce rapidly; there can be more than 10,000 descendants from a single female German cockroach in one year. A cockroach can enter a space through a crack as small as 3/16 of an inch.

Cockroaches as a Health Threat • Cockroaches are reported to spread at least 33 kinds of bacteria, six kinds of parasitic worms, and at least seven other human pathogens. • Cockroaches are the second most common cause of allergies in the United States. • According to the National Institute of Health’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, cockroach allergens cause the greatest health problems for asthmatic children. • Cockroach droppings, secretions, cast skins, and dead bodies are the main supply of allergens attributable to cockroaches. • Studies also show that high exposure to cockroaches also seem to boost a child’s risk of developing asthma in the first place, by creating the allergy that eventually leads to asthma. • In very large infestations, cockroaches have been observed to feed on sleeping people’s sores, hair, eyelashes, eyebrows, fingernails and toenails.

German Roaches will live in homes, apartments, restaurants, grocery stores, and any other places where food is prepared or stored - most commonly found in kitchens and bathrooms. The entire life cycle of a German Roach is approximately 3 months from egg to adult.

For more information on cockroaches from the Center for Disease Control visit: 
http://www.cdc.gov/nasd/docs/d001201-d001300/d001251/d001251.html

*Information obtained from:

• BASF at www.pestcontrolfacts.com
• P.G. Koehler and J.L. Castner, Professor and Scientific Photographer, respectively, Department of Entomology and hematology, Cooperative Extension Service,

Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS), University of Florida, Gainesville.