Pantry pests are a constant problem for households here in Oklahoma. These insects get into our food supplies and feed on our food. The biggest pantry pests that we have around the world is the cockroach. This insect gets into our cereals, flour and food supplies and feasts on our food. Not only do they consume our food but they can also spread diseases to us and our loved ones. It’s because of this that we need to make sure that cockroaches don’t have a place in our homes. In this article let’s take a good hard look at cockroaches, their lifecycle and how we can keep them out of our homes.
COCKROACHES AROUND THE WORLD
Even though cockroaches are a tropical pest, they are found almost all the way around the world. These insects prefer the warmer climates where they originated from. Because of this, they will find a way into our nicely heated homes and set up camp. They originated somewhere around the equator, but because of shipping and transportation, they’ve hitchhiked rides to six of the seven continents. Pretty much anywhere we are, there are cockroaches. If you’re having issues with cockroaches, call a reputable Broken Arrow pest control company today.
Cockroaches love our food supplies. They can find their way into flour, sugar, cereals, baked goods, meat products, fats and many other different types of foods. They consume just about anything that we can. This is why sanitation is such an important issue when it comes to taking care of cockroaches. If you leave grease out in a pan overnight, this could be a buffet for a family of cockroaches. Open food and unwashed dishes are also great places for them to catch a bite to eat. And once they find a place that they can get food, they will come back over and over and over again. The first step in controlling these insects is sanitation. Keeping things clean keeps cockroaches from having a place that they can eat.
SIGNS OF COCKROACHES
Cockroaches will leave trails where they live and have been. Often when you open the cupboard and see a place where cockroaches like to stay, there is a small gritty black substance all over the area. These are the droppings of cockroaches. If you find this then you know that this is a place where they hang out. In heavy infestation‘s, there’s often a unique smell the cockroaches emit. These are pheromones. These pheromones are hormones that can be detected by the sense of smell. They use them to communicate to other cockroaches things like reproductive information, food sources and other things that are necessary to communicate between cockroaches. Your Tulsa exterminator can help.
LIFECYCLE
Cockroaches develop using an incomplete metamorphosis. This means that they start as an egg. This egg is contained in an egg sack known as an ootheca. Most cockroaches will find a crack or crevice where they can hide their ootheca until the eggs hatch. The one exception is the German cockroach. In most homes, the German cockroaches is the most common cockroach that we find. The female German cockroach will carry the ootheca on her back until those eggs hatch. A Broken Arrow exterminator can help.
Once the egg hatches, a nymph will emerge from the egg. The nymph is a smaller version of the adult cockroach. Unlike other insects, it does not start as any kind of larva or anything of that nature. This nymph will take care of itself without the help of its parents. It will feed and everything until it grows to the point where its exoskeleton can no longer expand to allow for its growth. In order to continue growing, it must molt. This is a process that much like snakes undergo where they shed their skin. The cockroach will molt its exoskeleton creating a new one that’s larger and more supple, enabling it to expand again. The nymph will go through this process a number of times before it becomes a reproductive adult.
ADULT COCKROACHES
Adult cockroaches will pair up, mates and the females will lay more eggs. Once this happens the process will start all over again. In some cases roaches reproduce too rapidly. They’re specifically designed to reproduce very quickly because in nature they are at the bottom of the food chain. The typical ootheca can carry 40 to 50 eggs and the cockroach can produce the ootheca multiple times a year. In some cases overpopulation is an issue.
The first thing you’ll notice in a situation with overpopulation, is that the bugs will go up. You’ll see cockroaches on the wall and up against the ceiling. Many times you can see the droppings up in the corner of the wall where it meets the ceiling. This is the first sign of overpopulation. Once that starts happening, and their numbers get too large, often cockroaches will start to consume one another. In many cases, the adults will consume the young. This is an effort to keep the numbers down and maintain the population.
VECTORS FOR DISEASE
Cockroaches carry multiple different types of diseases. What are the most common side effects of their presence in the house, is excessive dust from their constant molting. This dust causes people with asthma to have severe issues. Other breathing problems can be caused by the dust left by these insects. In addition to this, many diseases can be passed when they consume our food. Because of this, it is super important that we get rid of cockroaches.
If you’re having an issue with cockroaches or any other bugs it’s time to get to bottom of the problem. You’ll need to call a reputable Tulsa pest control company such TermMax Pest Control. We are the best in the business when it comes to dealing with these insects or any other pests that you might be encountering. We service the greater Tulsa area including Owasso, Turley, Bixby, Sand Springs, Prattville, Sapulpa, Broken Arrow, Jenks, Claremore, Catoosa and much more. Call today for a free estimate. We’re here to help!
