Is a cockroach an insect or not? Types of cockroaches in an apartment - what they look like. Turkmen and Egyptian cockroaches

(Blattidae s. Blattodea) are the oldest, fast running insects, known since the Carboniferous period of the Paleozoic era. They have a body flattened in the dorsoventral direction, reaching a size of 3-6 cm. The abdomen is elongated, 8-10 segmented, with soft coverings. The family is characterized by rather long running legs with flattened femurs and five-segmented tarsi. At the posterior end of the abdomen, on segments 9 and 10, there are small appendages - cerci, which are rudimentary abdominal limbs that are formed during embryonic development; the cerci serve as the ears of an insect, through which they perceive sound vibrations a certain frequency; in males, on the last segment from below there are 1 or 2 unsegmented appendages - the stylus.

The head of cockroaches is vertical, equipped with well-developed eyes, long multi-segmented bristle-like antennae and mouthparts facing downwards, and is almost or completely covered by a large shield-shaped pronotum.

The oral apparatus is of a gnawing type, consisting of an upper lip, strong upper jaws (mandibles or mandibles), armed at the apex with teeth adapted for biting and roughly grinding hard and juicy foods. The mandibles open to the sides. The lower jaws, or maxillae, tenaciously hold a particle of food, which the mandibles grind until it becomes suitable for swallowing. The upper lip directs food to the mandibles, and the lower lip ensures that it does not pass past the mouth. The mandibles are not covered by the upper and lower lips, so insects are always characterized by the grin of the upper jaws with their teeth. On the maxillae and lower lip there are articulated appendages - palps with taste organs that inform about the merits of food.

In the stomach of the cockroach, solid food is further ground into the smallest particles using chitinous teeth and digested under the influence of its own enzymes. Nutrients that are indigestible under the influence of the cockroach’s own enzymes are absorbed by the specific fauna of intestinal symbionts.

In those species that have well-developed wings, both pairs carry a large number of longitudinal and many transverse veins; the front pair, narrower, compacted leathery or parchment-like, are called elytra and serve mainly as a protective cover for the wings of the rear pair when the insect is not flying; the rear pair is thin, wider, bears the main load during flight and folds fan-shaped under the elytra at rest. In females, the wings are often shortened or completely reduced. In many species, wings have the appearance of rudiments or are completely absent.

Typically, cockroaches have odorous glands that secrete sex and aggregation pheromones. In females, from the secretions of the accessory sex glands, a special sac is formed at the posterior end of the body, in which they carry eggs for 14-15 days; The shape of the egg sac is characteristic of various genera of cockroaches. Like all orthoptera, cockroaches undergo incomplete transformation and molt at least 5 times.

Most cockroaches are yellowish-brown in color, less often dark or black.

At least 3,000 species have been described, living in tropical and subtropical forests. In the territory former USSR There are 53 species of cockroaches, of which 49 species are native to our fauna, the rest are immigrants capable of living only in heated rooms. Among the latter are the inhabitants of human dwellings ( synanthropic species) are

• living in all parts of the world
  • red cockroach, or Russian cockroach (Blatta germanica)
  • black cockroach (sometimes called kitchen or oriental) - (Blatta orientalis)
• common in tropical countries
  • American cockroach (Periplaneta americana)

The homeland of the Prussian is considered to be South Asia, where the insect is found in the wild and has several close relatives. It is believed that the Prussian lived in the grottoes and huts of Stone Age people - mammoth hunters. It came to Greece in the 6th century BC. The red cockroach was brought to the countries of Eurasia around the middle of the 18th century. The Prussian came to our country from both the west and the east. It came to us from the west after the Seven Years' War in 1762–1763, together with Russian soldiers returning from Germany (does this explain its name - Prussian?), and from the east it was brought from China to Siberia around 1757–1760. Where it is warm, for example in the Crimea, in the south of Central Asia and in Far East, a Prussian and now lives in freedom.

The original homeland of the black cockroach has not been precisely established. Its closest relatives - species of the same genus - are distributed in Africa and Australia. It has been reliably known in England since 1634; it appeared in Holland in the 17th century.

The American cockroach was brought with goods to Europe from America and spread mainly in port cities, e.g. Kronstadt, St. Petersburg (where it is known in some baths); partially managed to penetrate into the country, for example. in France, where it is found in greenhouses, in Moscow, etc.

In general, cockroaches are common in all parts of the world, in the tropics and subtropics, in temperate and even polar countries. Cockroaches are spread by a person in whose things and goods cockroaches travel around the world.

Cockroaches are heat-loving and moisture-loving insects that avoid light. Live in the dark and damp places. Some of them, living in the jungle along the banks of rivers and streams, are excellent swimmers. Winged forms live on trees, bushes and low plants, and wingless ones stay in the grass, under leaves, etc. Inhabitants of human dwellings, in particular the red cockroach, both male and female, have two pairs of wings, which they use for movement very rarely, in exceptional cases, for example when falling from upper floors high-rise buildings. They live indoors: houses, bakeries, catering establishments.

Black cockroaches inhabit the basement, ground and lower floors of houses; they usually do not rise above the fifth floor. They prefer basements, toilets and bathrooms, places near radiators, electric stoves and pipes with hot water. IN large quantities may be seen around water sources. In warm areas, black cockroaches can be found on the streets. They live in hollow trees, landfills, and garbage. Black cockroaches are less mobile than other synanthropic species, they jump poorly, do not fly at all, and run well.

Cockroaches, inhabitants of human dwellings, hide in cracks during the day and come out in search of food at night. They are practically omnivores and eat a wide variety of foods of plant and animal origin. They feed on human food (food waste), as well as human secretions (feces, sputum). When people eat food, they contaminate it with their feces. This disperses bacteria and protozoan cysts.

Nymphs are generally similar in structure to adults and, as a rule, are found and feed with them. In conditions of poor nutrition, adult cockroaches can eat their weak, wounded, crippled brothers. In addition, red cockroaches eat egg packets of black cockroaches, the females of which shed the ootecae after their formation, which, together with the smaller number of eggs in the ooteca of the black cockroach, leads to the displacement of black cockroaches by red ones.

Without food and water, female cockroaches can live from 5 to 30 days, males - 5-15 days, larvae can starve for 40-70 days in a row.

The laying of eggs in cockroaches occurs in a rather unique way. Individual eggs, one after another, come from the oviduct and are collected in the egg chamber, where they are glued together with the help of a special secretion, forming a capsule, or ootheca. The ooteca of the red cockroach usually contains from 28 to 56 eggs, laid in symmetrical double rows. The female black cockroach lays up to 16 eggs in the ooteca. Ootheca forms over several days. Subsequently, the female black cockroach sheds her ootheca and does not care about her offspring. Female red cockroaches carry egg capsules at the end of their abdomen for 15–40 days, that is, until the nymphs are ready to be born. In this case, the eggs receive all the necessary substances from the mother’s body.

Cockroaches develop from two months to five years and go through 5–9 moults. The larvae differ from adults only in size, the absence of wings and the number of antennal segments. During development, without undergoing major transformations, the larvae molt several times and with each molt they become more and more similar to adult cockroaches. After the final molt, the larva becomes an adult and finishes growing.

Adults live up to seven years. The lifespan of cockroaches is largely determined by temperature. environment. The optimal temperature for the life of cockroaches is 22–27 degrees Celsius.

Nature of cockroaches

Cockroaches are one of the most ancient insects; they inhabited our planet back in the Paleozoic era and reached a length of 50 cm. Modern cockroaches are much “shorter” than their ancestors - from 4 to 10 centimeters. More than 4,500 species of cockroaches are known. Their population is especially numerous in the tropics and subtropics, among them there are real long-livers (the Australian rhinoceros cockroach lives for more than ten years, it holds the record for life expectancy), and only 55 species “live” in the territory of post-Soviet countries. Flying cockroaches are rare; only one species is known to science, which lives in Central and South America. But almost all species can swim.

Flying cockroach. Source: http://nakipre.blogspot.com

Cockroaches are true sleepyheads: they spend 75% of their lives sleeping. They are heat-loving insects and die at temperatures below -5°, so they cannot be found in northern latitudes.

Cockroaches are not primitive insects, they have a brain, it is located not in the head, but evenly throughout the body. And the blood white circulates freely without blood vessels.

Cockroaches do not breathe through their nose, they simply don’t have one, but through the cells of their entire body, which distinguishes them from other insects. Their hearing organs, or more simply put, their ears, are located on two processes - circuses, which grow at the end of the abdomen.

The stomach of a cockroach has strong muscles and... no less strong teeth. They have powerful, developed jaws, they are studded with chitinous teeth, which is why insects can eat very hard food, even wood and leather. The diet of cockroaches is very varied. They will gratefully eat anything that grows or moves, but at the same time, they can spend a whole month on a strict diet or starve.

The cockroach's eye consists of 4,000 segments, so the insect can see in all directions at the same time. Most cockroaches have two eyes, but species that live in poor lighting or its absence (for example, cave cockroaches), the eyes are atrophied or absent at all.

Survival gear

The female cockroach knows how to retain and store the male's seed, so after the first conception she can conceive several more times on her own, without his help. Most cockroaches lay eggs, but some are viviparous. It takes a cockroach larva from two months to five years to develop into an adult.

Larva of the cockroach Eublaberus distanti. Source: http://eublepharis.ru

Rhinoceros cockroach. Source: http://www.zoopicture.ru

The lethal dose of radiation for cockroaches is fifteen times higher than the lethal dose for humans, and cockroaches also sense microwave radiation. They can survive even inside a switched-on microwave, because they will accurately determine the place where harmful rays do not reach and take refuge there, but if a cockroach falls on its back out of the blue, it will die because it will not be able to roll over.

A cockroach can live without a head for nine days and die of starvation on the tenth. It is difficult to drown him and he is also unlikely to be able to drown himself, since he can hold his breath for 45 minutes. Research has shown that insects owe their endurance and amazing “survivability” to clear social behavior and the natural mechanisms that they use to help each other, “mutual assistance” for cockroaches is not just a word. For example, it has been proven that each cockroach leaves behind a special chemical trail that helps its comrades find their way to shelter, water and food.

Cockroaches are very mobile; they can change direction of movement 25 times per second. Small hairs on the sides of the insect catch the slightest vibrations in the air, so the cockroach “anticipates” your every movement.

The average cockroach can cover a distance of 22 centimeters in a second. The American cockroach runs 75 centimeters per second; if the American cockroach were the size of a cheetah, its speed would be 50 km/h. In 1991, an American sprinting cockroach set a record; it ran 5.4 km/h in 1 second. Giant cockroaches from the island of Madagascar, thanks to their athletic abilities, take part in cockroach races.

Cockroach race. Source: http://gavrosh.net

Cockroaches are considered carriers of dirt and infections, but they tirelessly monitor personal hygiene. They clean their whiskers with their hind paws, and if the hind paws are missing for some reason, then in a short period of time they adapt the front paws for washing.

Cockroach Doctor. Source: http://darkoman.net

Cockroach and man

Cockroaches have lived next to humans for a very long time. They are as integral a part of our reality as mice, cats and dogs. Perhaps that is why people did not feel the desire to explore them, arrogantly believing that everyone knew about them. Research on cockroaches began relatively recently.

The cockroach rules the kitchen. Source: http://www.colady.ru

There is an opinion that cockroaches owe their name to the Chuvash people. Translated from Chuvash, “cockroach” means “running away.” In Germany and the Czech Republic, red cockroaches are called “Russian”, and black ones are called “Swabians”, that is, “German”. Serbs also call the red ones “bubarus” (Russian beetle), and the black ones “bubashvaba” (German beetle).

Giant blabberus. Source: http://paramoribo.livejournal.com

In the Russian-language tradition, cockroaches have a lot of nicknames; they are called “tariks”, and “stasiks”, and “Prusaks”, and even “trams”.

Domino cockroach. Source: http://gallery.ecostudy.org

In many countries around the world, cockroaches, due to their unpretentiousness, are popular as pets. Archimandrite cockroaches, giant blaberus cockroaches, domino cockroaches, Cuban banana cockroaches and Madagascar hissing cockroaches are specially bred.

Madagascar hissing cockroach. Source: http://www.aquarion.ru

Cockroaches are also a valuable insect for lovers of terrarium animals. Ash cockroaches are an ideal food for lizards, frogs and snakes; not only amphibians are not averse to eating cockroaches.

A hedgehog chews a cockroach.

People study these insects with different purposes. Someone wants to get to know them better in order to effectively deal with domestic cockroaches. There are people who breed cockroaches for racing, and some consider them just cute pets. How many species of cockroaches are known to scientists? Today there are more than 4 thousand, and new ones are constantly being opened.

There are approximately fifty species living in Russia. Fortunately, only a small part is found in residential areas. The most typical one is the red cockroach. Warm apartments and houses became a safe haven for Blattella germanica. The red insect even became a character in a children's fairy tale - its hero was negative.

Prussians live everywhere, so his appearance perfectly familiar to most people: yellow-brown back, sometimes with black stripes. The female often carries the larvae behind her abdomen. The offspring that are born are very similar to the parents, only small in size. Sometimes you can see a white individual - this is what a cockroach looks like immediately after molting. But soon it becomes a normal color.

You can also find black cockroaches: they have more unusual and repulsive appearance. Blatta orientalis lives more often on lower floors, in the basements. The body length is much larger than its red relative: females can reach 30 cm (males are slightly smaller). This type can publish bad smell with the help of skin glands located on the abdomen.

In southern latitudes you can find the Central Asian species - it looks like a regular red one, but the abdomen is dark, almost black. In addition, Shelfordella tartara can jump and even fly!

Decorative cockroaches

There are also varieties for amateur breeding. That's right, some people get cockroaches voluntarily, instead of traditional cats and dogs. One of the most famous decorative species is the Australian cockroach - it is distinguished by its very large (for an insect) size. Macropanesthia rhinoceros lives in Australia, grows up to 9 cm, and is one of the largest cockroaches in the world. Outwardly, it looks more like a beetle: dark color and transverse stripes on its back, and also menacing-looking paws covered with spines.

In the wild, Australian cockroaches dig in leaves and dig holes in the sand. There they sit all the time, free from searching for food. This may be why they got their nickname - the burrowing rhinoceros cockroach. By the way, they can dig holes up to a meter long.

They feed on fallen tree branches. Female carries the entire offspring in a special bag, can produce several dozen larvae per year. Cockroaches reach maturity only at 4 years, of which they spend almost a year with their mother. And they live in nature for up to 10 years - very long term for an insect!

How to get rid of cockroaches at home?

Such a pet costs several thousand. He will have to buy a small terrarium- the cockroach will not be able to escape, because it does not know how to climb on glass or fly. You can feed them fruits and oak leaves. The bottom of the home is covered with a substrate in which the insect can dig holes.

Gallery: types of cockroaches (25 photos)

Flying species

What types of cockroaches are there? Some species can fly, although most have wings simply folded along the back. But this is not the case, for example, with the giant forest cockroach native to South America. In addition to its record size, it is also distinguished by its atypical yellow color. The wings are so large that they are longer than the entire body, the length of which in females reaches 8 cm (males are smaller). They not only make it possible to rise above the ground, which most cockroaches still cannot, but also help to effectively court females. When flirting, cockroaches lift them up, the friction of their wings on the back creates a sound.

This species is also kept in captivity, but requires space and careful handling. If you unexpectedly grab an individual, it can scratch with the sharp spines that are on its paws, and even bite. These insects also emit an unpleasant odor.

• Black American (Periplaneta Americana) - eats everything it can find in the sewers, where it most often lives. Spread throughout the world thanks to merchant ships. Now you can find it not only in your homeland (oddly enough, this is Africa), but also in Russia.
• Megaloblata (Megaloblatta longipennis) comes from Latin America, is distinguished by its enormous size (the largest known specimen was about 10 cm).
• The Ecuadorian banana cockroach (Panchlora nivea) lives on the ground, but can easily fly when necessary.

Phenaxin for cockroaches: instructions for use, reviews

"Dead Head"

Each species of cockroach has a scientific name in Latin. But not only. The name of cockroaches happens due to their external features or place of origin. For example, ordinary red cockroaches that live in an apartment are also called “Prussians”. A unusual looking mustachioed, originally from South America earned the nickname "death's head". It has a spot on its back: there are several light dots on a black background, general form resembles a skull or a frightening mask. That's where the creepy name comes from. Despite having large wings, this species cannot fly.

In captivity they keep it according to the same rules as other exotic cockroaches:

• Insects need a substrate.
• They should be fed not only with fruits, but also with protein foods.
• Most of these species are active at night, so there is no need to place their home near their sleeping area.
• The terrarium needs a lid to prevent the pets from running away.

Spectacular pets

Not everyone may like decorative cockroaches, but meeting them will definitely be unforgettable. Exotic cockroaches are different, one of the most popular types is six-pointed, also from the American continent. It is considered very impressive because the back of this representative of the cockroach fraternity is of an unusual orange hue. The name in this case is also dictated by the features appearance. The front back is decorated with two large and four small spots; they form a symmetrical pattern, which immediately allows the insect to be identified as Eublaberus distanti.

There are a huge number of representatives of arthropods in nature, but a select few live together with humans, capable of adapting to life in confined space and eating not larvae, but food waste. Not everyone knows what types of cockroaches live in residential and warehouses, what is the distinctive feature.

Did you know that the sewer cockroach is similar to a beetle? The dark color and shell practically do not distinguish insects from each other.

Dark brown, light and black cockroaches are just some of the varieties that live in the same area as humans.

Below is a short overview: what a person should know about insects and distinguish one variety from another.

Often, red cockroaches live together with people. The high survival rate and adaptability of the arthropod allows it to settle next to humans and feed on the same food.

Red long-horned beetles live:

• At catering establishments;
• In apartments;
• Private houses;
• In medical institutions.

The Prusak differs from its relatives in its elongated body and unique color - from red to brown.

Insects do not disdain food left by humans after eating. Move in kitchen cabinets, prefer to live behind heating radiators and bread containers.

• Basement;
• Garbage chute;
• Sewer hatches.

Scientists were unable to explain the fact that arthropods do not live in apartments located above the 5th floor. The residents below are under massive attack.

Insects, in summer period They move freely along the street, but prefer to spend the winter next to humans.

Pests are not averse to feasting on human food. They need constant access to water. In the absence of food residues, food waste, or crumbs on the floor, the insect will not disdain and fill its belly from a garbage can.

The size of individuals depends on living conditions. If water and food are in excess, the length of the body adult reaches 3 cm.

The color of barbels is not always black. Crawlers are dark red, brown, dark gray.

Sometimes it is impossible to determine the true species of cockroaches in an apartment. , but different in size.

Red females are superior to black females. Red ones reproduce faster and produce more offspring than dark ones.

A characteristic difference between black sliders and their relatives is the exuded specific smell, similar to mold.

The massive settlement and lightning-fast reproduction of black sliders indicates unsanitary conditions in the room.

Untimely disposal of garbage waste, crumbs on the table, unwashed dishes are a favorable environment for the development of pests. Individuals live where there is a lot of food, hence the name - kitchen.

Where to look for pests? While processing, look at:

• Bin;
• Kitchen Cabinet;
• Oven;
• Fridge;
• Under the table and baseboard in the kitchen.

Domestic black cockroaches can infect the inhabitants of the house with dangerous pathologies. Crawling through the trash can, moving through the bowls of four-legged pets and tasting food from the table, which subsequently enters the human digestive tract, the sewer reptile provokes the development of dysentery and helminthiasis.

Pests carry pathogenic bacteria and eggs by microorganisms on their paws. In the absence of timely measures, a person automatically becomes a carrier of E. coli.

In warm regions, the black longhorned beetle is not domestic. Individuals grow and reproduce on outdoors, settling under stones and in wall cracks.

White Prussians

Among domestic cockroaches, there are also those that differ from their relatives in color and lack of chitinous cover. These are white cockroaches.

Opinion about mutation or appearance in the apartment special type pests are a myth. In fact this is not separate species, A ordinary Prussians, experiencing the molting period.

Change of chitinous cover in arthropods during life cycle happens several times.

A characteristic feature is a transparent body and the absence of a shell.

Molting lasts several weeks. During this time, the larvae will change their status as a larva to a sexually mature individual, ready for fertilization.

The whitish color may be a consequence of exposure to insecticides that did not destroy the individual, but changed the genetic program. This is an example of pests getting used to a certain chemical.

An individual with two tails

Large cockroaches with two tails are settlers in private homes. Another name is two-tails. They crawl out of genital crevices in the spring, when the level of humidity in the underground increases.

A distinctive feature is the antennae bent inward and the forked tail. Color - from light to dark brown.

Two-tailed insects bite people, crawl into beds, shoes, and clothes. Crazy individuals crawl into the ear and nose of the sleeping person.

Having escaped from the underground to freedom, the tailed creatures settle in floor rags and wet linen. Residents of the private sector often bring tailed ones from the street, with clean laundry removed from the dryer.

They get rid of bivostok by sealing the genital cracks and drying the underground. In the summer, vents are opened in the house.

American arthropod

These are not all types of cockroaches in the apartment. The American pest arrived with food transported by water.

American arthropods are very mobile. When they see a sleeping victim, they become aggressive and attack.

Have a detrimental effect on American arthropods low temperatures. At 0 C, individuals die.

Furniture pest

Unlike its relatives, the furniture cockroach does not feed on food waste and food.

Furniture pests are characterized by:

• Bright red color;
• Transparent wings with brown stripes;
• Heightened olfactory receptors.

The main diet of individuals is starch, contained in wallpaper glue and the binding of Soviet books.

The usual habitat is archives, bedrooms, libraries, card files.

Central Asian arthropod

There are Central Asian individuals in Russia that live together with humans. If white cockroaches have a transparent body, then Central Asian cockroaches have a dark belly. The head of the Prussian is yellowish.

Lives in regions with warm climates. Exotic plants are destroyed with conventional insecticides.

It doesn’t matter whether sewer cockroaches live in the apartment or kitchen ones, you need to get rid of the pests immediately.

Stock up on a variety of insecticidal preparations and repellents.

The more measures are taken, the hurry up apartment will be freed from unexpected settlers.

Important rule! Before disinfestation, the apartment is cleaned, food and household waste, free the house from deposits of rubbish.

After a large-scale spring cleaning apply insecticide. Only with complex measures will bullying be effective.

One moment! ? Block access to the home.

Seal the cracks in the floor, seal entrance doors, change the grille to vent to fine mesh.

Proper preparation for pest control is a guarantee of successful bullying without the risk of relapse.

Considering cockroaches not out of entomological interest, but in the context of fighting them as uninvited guests in our homes, it is worth omitting the description of several thousand species living on the planet.

Information about the types of cockroaches is structured as follows:

There remain relatively few of those who have been annoying people with their intrusive proximity for centuries. Living conditions in close contact with people turned out to be more attractive than in wildlife. And now people are forced to protect their homes from annoying and very tenacious representatives of the fauna.

What do domestic cockroaches have in common?

The main thing common to all is secrecy, which gives time to insects that have chosen a new place to breed in sufficient numbers. Then local losses of individuals will not have catastrophic consequences for the entire population. The speed of reproduction also contributes to this.

The nocturnal lifestyle also helps cockroaches survive in conditions of constant danger posed by those at whose expense they feed, so it is much easier to avoid unnecessary encounters. A narrow, flat body and great agility make it possible to quickly hide in various cracks and voids.

• elongated oval body up to 13 millimeters long;
• mustache exceeding body length;
• pronounced Brown color, with variations from light to dark.

The Prussian, as it is also called, eats almost everything that lies poorly. The freshness of the products does not play a special role. Living in human habitation, it goes out hunting at night, picking up the remains of dinner, cleaning dirty dishes and everything that can store a certain amount of nutrients. It can sneak into places that the owners thought were inaccessible, such as bread bins, closed containers, and even refrigerators.

And by putting food out of reach and carefully wiping all the crumbs off the table, a person will not leave the red cockroach hungry. He will find something to profit from in the trash can or inside kitchen stove. Omnivorousness allows them to survive even on flowers on the windowsill or soap on the washbasin. In addition, they know how to starve, going without food for up to a month, but what they cannot live without for so long is water.

Acceptable room temperature - from 15 to 30 degrees Celsius and constant access to sources of water, not to mention affordable food, make our kitchens ideal place for the red barbel. And the presence of all kinds of shelters, which abound in furniture, baseboards, wallpaper, heating radiators and water supply pipes, allow them to reproduce at the speed of which they are only capable.

The closest relative of the Prussian, and almost not inferior to it in terms of the degree of dependence on humans. This species, however, is more wild, and settles in dwellings, driven by cold and hunger from garbage containers, basements and sewers. This may be why it is almost never found in apartments located above the fifth floor.

Distinctive features:

• oval flat body up to 3 centimeters long in the imago;
• relatively short limbs with suckers;
• shiny black or dark brown color.

• sewer drains and water supply pipes;
• air ducts and ventilation;
• cracks along baseboards, window and door openings.

Due to the degree of danger infectious diseases, transmitted by black cockroaches, they are more dangerous to humans than the Prussians, despite the wider population of the latter.

No, these are not albinos, like some animals, and not even a separate group. This is a cockroach that has lost its chitinous shell and has not had time to acquire a new one. The molting process in these insects occurs about 8 times in their life, and at this time the cockroach is extremely vulnerable.

As never before, it goes particularly deep into hiding until its chitinous layer is restored and it gradually darkens, its usual color. All types of cockroaches that live in people's homes are subject to this metamorphosis.
It also happens that this is a surviving victim of exposure to chemical reagents, as a result of a person’s own insecticidal treatment of your home. In such cases, the color of the insect is not restored. Photo white cockroach:

American cockroach

Contrary to its name, it is a native of Africa, brought to the American continent, and then to Europe, thanks to the rapidly developing maritime trade. Traveling in bales and boxes of goods, they settled almost all over the world.
Initially a wild species, the American cockroach quickly adapted to new development conditions and became no less dependent on humans than other synanthropic species. In cohabitation with people, they are attracted by the same easily accessible water, food and acceptable temperature limits. But the American's are still much lower than those of red Prussians or black omnivores. It cannot withstand the slightest negative temperatures.
Even larger than the black one, it surpasses even the red one in speed of movement, and has a very aggressive disposition.

Furniture cockroaches

Recently open view, it has a red color and wings with brown stripes. He is distinguished by complete indifference to the food of a person with whom he is connected by a love of books. In bindings, as well as in wallpaper glue, he finds his favorite starch, which he mainly feeds on.

Turkmen and Egyptian cockroaches

Residents of the southern regions of Russia and Central Asia are probably familiar with this species of cockroach, which is quite rare in the cooler latitudes of our country.
At home, they live in livestock pens and poultry houses, but they can also migrate to human homes.