In the global ranking of the worst pests, cockroaches are clearly ahead - far ahead of bed bugs and other vermin. With an extensive repertoire of deadly abilities, cockroaches make life miserable in homes, bakeries, restaurants, and grocery stores. You can find out here whether the beasts can also fly.

Cockroaches are bad fliers

Table of Contents

Show all
  1. the essentials in brief
  2. Can cockroaches fly?
  3. What cockroaches fly?
  4. Special case forest cockroaches
  5. Can Baby Cockroaches Fly?
  6. frequently asked Questions

    7. the essentials in brief

    • Cockroaches have wings and can fly.
    • In male cockroaches, the ability to fly is severely limited to a short gliding flight. Females are unable to fly due to vestigial wings.
    • Baby cockroaches cannot fly because adult cockroaches develop wings.

    Can cockroaches fly?

    Yes, in principle, cockroaches can fly. However, the ability to fly is massively restricted and in no way comparable to the flying skills of house flies, fruit flies and other pests. Like most insects, cockroaches have two pairs of wings. The flying apparatus is made up of tough, leathery cover wings and filigree hind wings. At rest, the wings lie flat against the body.

    Irrespective of this, a cockroach will seldom or never buzz around your head. Often only male cockroaches can fall back on fully developed wings. Of course, there is little interest in flying around the house because female cockroaches mainly move on the ground. In many females, the wings have atrophied and become unusable. Sometimes they are just dummies because the necessary flight muscles are no longer available.

    digression

    Nimble legs and flexible exoskeleton

    Reduced ability to fly does not prevent cockroaches from annexing buildings. On their three lateral pairs of legs, the insects are extremely fast with top speeds of up to 1.5 meters per second - horizontally and vertically. A flexible exoskeleton enables cockroaches to use the tiniest cracks and crevices as loopholes.

    Which cockroaches can fly?

    Most cockroaches can fly

    In the dark realm of cockroaches, having wings doesn't necessarily mean unrestricted flight. In many cockroach species, wings have declined to insignificance over millions of years of evolution. A few species found in Europe have retained some degree of flight ability. The following table introduces you to the 5 most common types of cockroaches that can fly:

    scientific name size color wings yes/no ability to fly
    German cockroach Blattella germanica 13-16mm brown to clay yellow Yes restricted, gliding
    Common cockroach Blatta orientalis 25-30mm black to dark brown Yes restricted, gliding
    American cockroach Periplaneta americana 34-53mm reddish brown Yes Well
    cockroach Supella longipalpa 10-14mm yellow-brown Yes restricted
    forest cockroaches Ectobiinae 9-14mm brown to light brown Yes Well

    The following explanations shed light on the actual ability to fly of the respective cockroach species:

    German cockroach (Blattella germanica)

    The dominant cockroach species in Germany and throughout Central Europe is the German cockroach, also known as the cockroach. In adult animals, the wings extend to the end of the abdomen. The flying apparatus is no longer operational in female cockroaches. At most, the slightly smaller and lighter males are capable of a short gliding flight. Of course, this handicap does not prevent the pests from dashing through the building at an impressive top speed of 30 meters per second. In addition, the insects can jump 5 to 10 centimeters.

    Common cockroach (Blatta orientalis)

    The common cockroach cannot fly and is also a poor climber

    The common cockroach is also known as the baker's cockroach and the oriental cockroach. In addition to the German cockroach, this species of cockroach most frequently harasses people in Germany and worldwide. Smooth, curved wings are present only in males and are at best suitable for a short gliding flight. In the case of the female baker cockroaches, the wings are stunted to short stubs or absent entirely.

    Because oriental cockroaches are so large and heavy, they stay on the ground and don't climb walls. To compensate for the severely restricted or lost ability to fly, these cockroaches hold the speed record at a dizzying 150 centimeters per second. Smaller obstacles are not flown over, but skipped over.

    American cockroach (Periplaneta americana)

    Regardless of its name, the American cockroach is also making itself unpopular in German buildings. Males and females have well-developed wings extending to the end of their abdomen. In males, the wings protrude beyond the abdomen. However, the insects rarely use the resulting unrestricted ability to fly. The pests prefer to rely on their strong legs, which they use to move as quickly as possible. In order to overcome one or the other stumbling block, the cockroaches do not even bother to unfold their wings, but master the obstacle in one jump.

    Brown-banded Cockroach (Supella longipalpa)

    Under the name furniture cockroach, the smallest species of cockroach spreads fear and terror in Germany. The vermin primarily have their sights set on pieces of furniture of all kinds where there is serious damage caused by feeding. Both sexes can fall back on wings up to the tip of the abdomen or beyond. The wings are usually only unfolded at high temperatures of more than 30 degrees Celsius.

    tips

    Cockroach sightings should not be taken lightly. As a result of unbelievable reproduction rates, a plague of cockroaches is inevitable that surpasses any plague of mice. A German cockroach produces 40 new animals with a single packet of eggs. If half of them are female, 20 x 40 more specimens, i.e. 800 cockroaches, will develop within two months. After another two months you already have 400 x 40, i.e. 16,000 cockroaches on your neck.

    Special case forest cockroaches

    Forest cockroaches are beneficial and cannot fly

    Cockroaches are the innocent victims of the worldwide cockroach aversion. In fact, forest cockroaches have a completely different lifestyle than cockroaches. Their habitat extends across deciduous and mixed forests. Only rarely do forest cockroaches get lost in buildings. There, it is their downfall that they look confusingly similar to the dreaded German cockroaches (Blattella germanica). The following arguments explain why forest cockroaches occupy a special position:

    • useful: Forest cockroaches are beneficial because they feed on decomposing plant waste
    • harmless: no affinity for food or animal feed, no risk of disease transmission
    • diurnal: traveling mainly during daylight, in contrast to the distantly related, nocturnal vermin
    • airworthy: Equipped with working flying machine

    If forest cockroaches accidentally get into living spaces, this does not end well for the beneficial insects. Due to lack of food, the insects die within a few days if they have not already been the victim of a fly swatter.

    Can Baby Cockroaches Fly?

    Baby cockroaches can't fly. This fact is due to a specific development cycle. Cockroach eggs develop into nymphs, not larvae. These are juveniles that look very similar to an adult cockroach at a very early stage of development, including rudimentary wings. The wings are only fully developed when the cockroaches are fully grown.

    frequently asked Questions

    Are cockroaches dangerous?

    Cockroach infestation means a high health risk for people, pets and livestock. With feces and other excreta, the insects contaminate stored food and animal feed. Furthermore, scientists have proven beyond a doubt that cockroaches transmit diseases such as dysentery, cholera, tuberculosis, anthrax and salmonellosis. Molting debris and dried feces trigger asthma in susceptible individuals.

    How to recognize cockroach infestation in the house?

    You will rarely see a live cockroach. Cockroaches are nocturnal, very shy and lightning fast. Typical indications of the presence of the pests are damage caused by feeding on food supplies, a penetrating smell, transparent remains of the skin and crumbs of droppings on walls and floors. Commercial sticky traps with special attractants provide the last certainty about a cockroach infestation.

    How do cockroaches get into the apartment building?

    Cockroaches often find their way into homes as stowaways in food packaging, second-hand kitchen appliances or holiday luggage. Furthermore, the pests like to migrate from neighboring bakeries, restaurants or food factories. The smallest cracks and crevices are used by cunning cockroaches as loopholes to nest in the house.

    How can I prevent cockroach infestations?

    Small constructional measures are an effective preventive measure. Seal all joints in the masonry. Eliminate door gaps, even if they are just a few millimeters. Avoid standing water in watering cans, buckets, basins and flower pot saucers. Check used electrical appliances, such as refrigerators, washing machines or coffee makers for cockroaches and egg packets. Do not use old banana boxes and similar packaging to transport your purchases home.

    What can you do about cockroaches in the home?

    Deprive cockroaches of their livelihood in the home. Always wipe up leftover food immediately. Regularly clean worktops, hard-to-reach niches, ovens, refrigerators and other heat-generating household appliances. Wash used dishes promptly and do not leave them in the sink overnight. Take all organic waste outside each evening. Cockroaches can easily bite through paper, cardboard and plastic wrap. Therefore, keep supplies in closed containers made of glass, ceramic or porcelain.

    Can cockroaches bite a human?

    Cockroaches are equipped with powerful mouthparts. As omnivores, the pests make no distinction between vegetables, fruit, meat, cardboard, leather or human skin. However, cockroaches are not explicitly hunting for humans to actively bite them like blood-sucking insects. Only a few cases have been documented of people being bitten by a cockroach.

    tips

    Cockroaches are phenomenally tough. It sounds like a horror scenario and is nevertheless based on scientific knowledge: Cockroaches can live without a head for a week. Unlike humans, cockroaches do not rely on their heads to breathe. Oxygen is absorbed through small body openings. And the food intake? No problem for headless cockroaches, because they can do without any food for up to four weeks.

Category:

Animals in the garden