Are you worried your home may have cockroaches? Take a look at a few cockroach pictures to help you identify whatever culprit may be hiding in your home.
Worried you might have a cockroach problem on your hands? These pictures of cockroaches will help you pick the bad guys out of a lineup so pest management professionals can start handing out sentences without the possibility of parole.
Do all cockroaches look alike?
No. All cockroaches are similar, but not identical. As you can see in Fig. 1, there are different types and sizes of cockroaches. Each species is identifiable by its distinct features, but it's not always an easy task. Moreover, young roaches often look quite different from their adult counterparts in both size and appearance.
Identifying the types of cockroaches in your home is important because it dictates the best methods for getting rid of them.
How can I tell cockroaches apart?
Here's how it's done: find the Australian cockroach in Fig. 1. It has a black shape on its pronotum (the shield-shaped plate behind its head) that's encircled by a yellow band.
Next, try identifying the smoky brown cockroach. It has a mahogany-brown pronotum and its wings are slightly longer than its body. Think you got it?
Starting with the cockroach on the dime (did you even see that one?) and working clockwise, the pictures in Fig. 1 are of the Asian cockroach, Florida woods cockroach, brown-banded cockroach, Australian cockroach, smoky brown cockroach and Surinam cockroach.
How did you do? Don't worry about it. That's why reputable pest management professionals offer a free home pest inspection: to make your life easier.
Why don't these pictures of cockroaches really help?
Cockroaches are fast and really good at hiding. The telltale long antennae, flat bodies, six hairy legs, downward facing head, shield-like pronotum, and two forewings and hindwings you see in these pictures can be difficult to make out in real time.
Trying to spot tiny differences between similar species as they scurry into cracks and crevices can be nearly impossible to the untrained eye. While it may be tempting to step on the roach, this makes it even harder to identify afterward.
Is there any specific type of cockroach I should really look out for?
Take a look at Fig. 2. These cockroach images depict the most common household varieties in the United States: the German cockroach.
At the left is an ootheca (top) and nymph (bottom). A German cockroach ootheca can hold 20 to 40 eggs. These eggs hatch nymphs, which grow into adult males (center) and females (right).
If you see any of the depicted, it’s a sure sign you have cockroaches in your home. To get rid of an infestation, German cockroaches in each life cycle stage must be accounted for.
If you think you've seen one of these suspects lurking around your home, don't waste time searching through pictures of cockroaches like mugshots at a police station. Call Terminix® right away and restore order in your home.
