Cockroaches are pests through- 

 out the United States. They carry 

 filth on their legs and bodies and 

 may spread disease by polluting 

 food. They destroy food and dam- 

 age fabrics and bookbindings. 



Cockroaches have an offensive 

 odor that may ruin food. Unless 

 dishes over which the insects run 

 are thoroughly washed, they may 

 give off the odor when warmed. 



There are about 55 kinds of cock- 

 roaches in the United States, but 

 only 5 kinds are troublesome in 

 buildings. Most of the others live 

 outdoors. They may enter houses 

 by coming in on firewood or by fly- 

 ing to lights, but most of them can- 

 not develop indoors. They either 

 leave or die. 



Those that do develop indoors 

 are fairly easy to control in most 

 homes. 



Description 



brown, light brown, or black. The 

 adults of most species have wings. 

 The young look like the adults, ex- 

 cept that they are smaller and do 

 not have wings. 



Cockroaches hide during the day 

 in sheltered, dark places. They 

 come out and forage at night. If 

 disturbed, they run rapidly for shel- 

 ter and disappear through openings 

 to their hiding places. 



The five kinds that are trouble- 

 some in buildings can be distin- 

 guished from each other by their 

 appearance and by the places where 

 they are found. The table and 

 illustrations will help you learn to 

 distinguish them. 



Development 



German and brown-banded cock- 

 roaches mature in 4 to 6 months; 

 other kinds mature in about a year. 



Cockroaches grow slowly when 

 food, temperature, and moisture 

 are unfavorable. Conditions are 



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Cockroaches have a broad, flat- 

 tened shape, and six long legs. 

 They are dark brown, reddish 



American cockroach. (Natural size; some 

 individuals are larger.) 



