Some pests that my customers deal with have specific seasons. We see a lot of rodent problems in the winter. Ants are very common in the spring time. In the end of the summer and the beginning of the fall we see plenty of spiders. But some pests are not seasonal. The biggest pest that I see all year round is the cockroach. Many people have issues with cockroaches. Cockroaches are a pantry past that enjoys consuming our food and living in our homes. Let’s talk about cockroaches, how they live and how to get rid of them. 

DIFFERENT KINDS OF COCKROACHES

There are four different types of cockroaches that we see commonly in the United States. The German cockroach is the most ubiquitous of all the cockroaches. It’s about 3/4” to an inch long and brown in color. The pronotum, or plate behind his head, has two lighter color stripes going vertically down it. This cockroach is found in almost 80% to 90% of infestations that I see. They are very quick to reproduce, and are very good hiders. They prefer staying low to the ground which is where they thrive. The second kind of cockroach that I see probably 10% to 15% of the time, is the brown banded cockroach. These cockroaches are also about the same size as a German cockroach and brown in color. The one physical trait that I find different from the German cockroach are two horizontal bands around the abdomen of the insect. These bands are a yellow to light brown in color. 

The brown banded cockroach is a roach that likes to be higher on the wall. They tend to hide behind pictures and wall clocks, and will fly when they need to. Both the brown banded cockroach and the German cockroach can fly if they need to. These cockroaches are very bad at flying, and don’t often do it. They have to find them selves perched high up somewhere, and have a need to get down very quickly. They will flap their wings and sort of glide to the ground. When they do fly, it makes them very susceptible to predators. This is why they don’t do it very often. These two species are our most common indoor pests when it comes to roaches. Call your Tulsa exterminator for more information.  

OUTDOOR COCKROACHES

Two other species, are also very common but are mostly found outdoor. The American cockroach is the largest cockroach that we see stumbling inside of homes, businesses and buildings. This cockroach is 2 to 3 inches long and brown in color. They predominately hang out in sewers and drainage ditches. Often when we see American cockroaches, there’s a plumbing issue in the home. They will often travel on the sides of pipes or inside them if the pipe is dry. If you’re having any kind of plumbing issues in your house, it’s important that you take care of the plumbing issues first and then deal with the pests that come with that. Your Broken Arrow exterminator can help.   

The oriental cockroach is a little smaller than the American cockroach but fully black in color. This cockroach prefers the outdoors to being inside. It stays predominately in drainage ditches. Only when they stumble inside will you find oriental cockroaches. It also could be a plumbing issue that is causing these insects to roam into your home. The brown banded cockroach and the German cockroach are the two cockroaches that we find in pantries and kitchens. They enjoy eating the same foods that we do. Sanitation is of the upmost importance when it comes to taking care of any of these pests. Keeping food, waste and dirty dishes in their perspective places is most important. Washing dishes every night and putting away food will keep these insects from finding your home to begin with. Keeping your cereals and dry goods inside sealed plastic containers will also help. 

DISEASE AND COCKROACHES

These insects are the bottom feeders of our ecosystem. They often will feed upon waste, dead animals or other bacteria filled things. Because of this, they can carry many diseases on them. It’s very important that you get these insects taken care of if you find them in your home. There are studies that have found that cockroaches have a direct connection with asthma in children. This is because, as the cockroaches reproduce, they molt and small dust particles and pieces of their exoskeleton are released into the air. This can cause many people to have respiratory issues including asthma. Call your Tulsa pest control service today.  

When removing these insects from your home, again sanitation is a must. Restaurants have a particularly difficult issue with these insects. It’s important to keep everything clean and sanitized throughout your home or business. This will keep you having a healthy space for you, your family and your loved ones. Cockroaches are very quick for their body size. Even the smallest ones can move almost at the same rate that the adults can. It is also true that they can withstand a lot of radiation. They actually can withstand more radiation than we can. The reason for this, is because radiation directly affects cells that are splitting. And in humans and other mammals, our cells are constantly splitting. In insects, once they reach a certain size their cells slow and stop splitting. Because of this, radioactivity just doesn’t affect them anywhere near as much as it does us. 

ELIMINATING COCKROACHES FROM YOUR HOME

If you find yourself in a situation where you have cockroaches in your home, it’s important that you take care of them as soon as possible. Your family members are depending upon it. Here at TermMax Pest Control, we are the best Broken Arrow pest control company in the business. We Service the greater Tulsa area including Owasso, Collinsville, Coweta, Claremore, Sand Springs, Sapulpa, Prattville, Turley, Broken Arrow, Jenks, Bixby and much more. Call us today and will get you a free estimate. We’re here to help!

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