Is Valentine's Day a Day for Roaches?

You may have seen the headlines as zoos all over the country are continuing the strange Valentine’s Day tradition of naming roaches after people’s exes. Most of these newly named roaches will become part of another animal’s dinner. So, is it fair that the roach has such a bad reputation? The answer is not as straight forward as you may think.

There are approximately 4,500 species of roaches in the world. They range from ones that are common here in New Jersey, like the German cockroach, to the exotic species, like the Madagascar Hissing Cockroach. Of the 4,500 species, 30 are considered pests due to their tendency to live close to humans.

German cockroaches are said to make up approximately 97% of the indoor infestations in New Jersey so it is a good idea to know a little about them. The body of a German cockroach is about a half of an inch long (sometimes slightly larger) and oval. They have six legs and antennae. They are brown to tan in coloring with two dark, almost parallel, stripes, located on their backs.  Females tend to be darker than males, and their nymphs are dark brown to almost black. Although they have wings, they rarely fly. Instead, you are likely to see them running from one hiding space to another.

Depending on the species, roaches can benefit an ecosystem. They act as “nature’s cleanup crew” by helping to break down decaying organic matter and recycling nutrients back into the soil. In some areas they are even known to be good pollinators. But when it comes to the roaches we find in New Jersey, the problems far outweigh the benefits. First, roaches are a major vector for disease. They can spread more than thirty types of bacteria. Some of these bacteria pose significant health threats for humans like Salmonella and E. coli. They can also spread parasitic worms.

Fecal matter and saliva from the roaches we find here in New Jersey are known to exacerbate allergy and asthma problems in people who are susceptible. However, all people can be negatively affected by the contamination left behind when roaches walk on surfaces or in containers that contain food.

A single roach, something that weighs one tenth of a paperclip, would likely not cause much damage, but the problem is there is almost never a lone roach in a home. Roaches reproduce quickly, often leading to full-blown infestations in weeks. In fact, a single female German cockroach can lead to thousands of offspring in a year. This kind of rapid reproduction, along with their ability to hide in tiny crevices, and their increasing resistance to pesticides makes German cockroaches incredibly difficult to control.