BIOTIC ASSOCIATIONS OF COCKROACHES — ROTH & WILLIS I7 



roaches that live in the guano of cavernicolous vertebrates (Gyna, 

 Acanthogyna, Dyscologamia, Pycnoscelus). (4) Troglobies: Cock- 

 roaches that apparently cannot live outside of caves and which show 

 very marked adaptive characters {Alluaudellina, Nocticola, Spelaeo- 

 blatta, Typhloblatta) . For complete discussions of these groups in- 

 cluding descriptions of the adaptive characters shown by certain 

 genera, the original sources should be consulted. 



Although we know very little of the ethology of most of the 

 cavernicolous cockroaches, it is intriguing that three of the six known 

 species of Nocticola are cave dwellers, two are inhabitants of termite 

 nests (p. 315), and one (N. holivari) was found under stones and 

 cement blocks (Chopard, 1950b). In the rather extensive list of 

 cavernicolous cockroaches only two (Arcnivaffa grata and Parcohlatta 

 sp.) were taken from caves in North America north of Yucatan. All 

 other records are from Africa, Asia, Central America, Europe, West 

 Indies, East Indies, and the Philippine Islands. This we find puzzHng. 

 Packard (1888) in his extensive study of the cave fauna of North 

 America listed no cockroaches. Dearolf (1941) found only the above- 

 mentioned Parcohlatta in one of ■t^'j caves in Pennsylvania. Kohls and 

 Jellison (1948) listed no cockroaches among the arthropods from six 

 bat caves in Texas. We would expect Periplaneta americana to in- 

 habit mines in North America, but we have found no such records. 

 Have cockroaches been ignored in faunal collections from North 

 American caves, or has our cave fauna been less extensively studied 

 than that of other parts of the world ? 



The two species of cockroaches found in mines (BlatteUa germanica 

 and Periplaneta americana) are also found in caves. For this reason 

 we have included them in the list headed Cavernicolous Cockroaches. 

 On the other hand, the cockroaches found in animal burrows are 

 generally different species from those found in caves, so we have 

 grouped these together in a second list. 



CAVERNICOLOUS COCKROACHES 

 Alluaudellina cavernicola 



Tanganyika. — From Kulumusi caves, near Tanga. The eyes of this 

 cockroach are reduced to a pair of slender streaks (Shelford, 1910a; 

 Chopard, 1932a). 



East Africa. — Chopard ( 1936) . 



Apotrogia angolensis 



Belgian Congo. — A troglophile without well-marked adaptive char- 

 acters. Collected in moist sand on floor of a sandstone grotto in- 



