The first arrival of the Chinese sand roach Polyphaga cf. plancyi (Blattodea: Corydiidae) in Europe

By

Vujić, Mihailo
Vesović, Nikola

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2022-12-31

Original Publication

Travaux du Muséum national d'histoire naturelle "Grigore Antipa"

Volume

65

Series / Issue

Issue: 2

Pages

163--172

Subjects

Alien species , Allochthonous species , China , Citizen science , Cockroach

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

București, România Muzeul Național de Istorie Naturală "Grigore Antipa" -2009

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/travaux.65.e97208

 

Abstract

Polyphaga plancyi Bolívar, 1883, also known as Chinese sand roach, it is a large Corydiidae species with a native distribution that includes several Chinese provinces and southern part of the Russian Far East. It is a well-known insect in traditional Chinese medicine, and the biological activity of the compounds isolated from it are actively studied. So far, there are no records of this species outside its natural range, at least outside China. In this article, we present the first record of P. cf. plancyi specimen collected in Europe, probably imported from Shanghai. The specimen was recognized as a non-native cockroach species to Europe via photo posted on social media, and it was subsequently taxonomically identified. Details of its possible origin, its morphology, importance of citizen science, as well as annotations on the other synanthropic cockroaches in Serbia are provided.