INSECTS AFFECTING HOUSEHOLD GOODS 215 



rapidly and were also often known as " water-bugs." This 

 species is a light-brown color with dark, brownish-black 

 markings as shown in Fig. 157, and is somewhat less than 

 an inch long when full grown. The Oriental Roach * is a 

 black species, an inch or more long. The female has only 

 rudiments of wings and the wings of the male extend from 

 one-half to three-quarters to the tip of the abdomen. The 

 American Cockroach f is a native species, about one and -one- 

 half inches long. It is reddish-brown and the wings extend 

 beyond the end of the abdomen. The Australian Roach J 

 is much like the last species, but smaller, and has a brighter 

 and better defined band of yellow on the prothorax, and a 

 yellow dash on the sides of the upper wings. It is the most 

 abundant species in Florida and some of the Southern 

 States. 



Roaches are fond of warm places and, therefore, frequent 

 kitchens and pantries. They are largely nocturnal in habits 

 and hide in cracks, back of wainscoting, etc., in the day. 

 They feed on all sorts of materials, attacking all kinds of 

 food products, and often do serious damage to bookbindings. 

 Otherwise, the real damage they do is not so serious as the 

 disagreeable roachy odor they leave and the presence of their 

 excrement and cast skins wherever they have been. 



"One of the most effective simple means of ridding 

 premises of roaches is dusting with commercial sodium fluorid, 

 either pure or diluted one-half with some inert substance 

 such as powdered gypsum or flour. With the use of some 

 dust gun or blower the sodium fluorid can be thoroughly 

 dusted over the shelves, tables, floors and runways and hid- 

 ing places of the roaches." Marlatt (31). 



* Periplaneta orientalis Linn. 

 t Periplaneta americana Linn 

 J Periplaneta australasice. 



