Oriental cockroach
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2008-05-29T04:38:30Z
TXiKiBoT
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robot Modifying: [[ca:Blatta orientalis]]
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{{cleanup-remainder|date=February 2007}}
{{Taxobox
| name = Oriental cockroach
| image = Common Cockroach - Project Gutenberg eText 16410.png
| image_caption = ''a'', female; ''b'', male; ''c'', side view of female; ''d'', young.
| image_width = 200px
| regnum = [[Animal]]ia
| phylum = [[Arthropod]]a
| classis = [[Insect]]a
| ordo = [[Blattodea]]
| familia = [[Blattidae]]
| genus = ''[[Blatta]]''
| species = '''''B. orientalis'''''
| binomial = ''Blatta orientalis''
| binomial_authority = [[Carolus Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], [[Systema Naturae|1758]]
}}
The '''Oriental cockroach''' or '''waterbug''' (''Blatta orientalis'') is a large species of [[cockroach]], measuring about 1 inch in length at maturity. It is dark brown to black in colour and has a glossy body. The female Oriental cockroach has a somewhat different appearance to the male, appearing to be wingless at casual glance but has two very short and useless wings just below its head. It has a wider body than the male. The male has long wings, which cover a majority of its body and are brown in colour, and has a more narrow body. The odd male is capable of very short flights, ranging about 2-3 meters. The female Oriental cockroach looks somewhat similar to the [[Florida woods cockroach]], and may be mistaken for it.
== Habitat ==
The Oriental cockroach tends to travel somewhat more slowly than other species. They are often called "waterbugs" since they prefer dark, moist places. They can often be found around decaying organic matter, and in sewers, drains, damp basements, porches, and other damp locations. They can be found outside in bushes, under leaf groundcover, under [[mulch]], and around other damp places outdoors.
== Adaptation ==
In order to thrive, cockroaches need a place to hide. They prefer warm places and a relatively high humidity if possible; they also need a source of food/liquid. The optimum temperature for Oriental cockroaches is between 20–29 °C; thus they are rarely found outdoors in the U.K.
Female Oriental cockroaches have vestigial [[tegmina]] (reduced forewings) and males have longer tegmina.
Cockroaches are mainly nocturnal. Oriental cockroaches can be elusive in that a casual inspection of an infested dwelling during the day may show no signs of roach activity.
[[Image:Oriental.jpg|left|thumb|80px|Collection of Oriental roaches caught on monitoring trap]]
== Distinction ==
Signs of cockroaches are their [[ootheca]]e, which are “egg cases” containing up to 16 individual eggs in the case of Oriental cockroaches. These oothecae are dropped by females and hatch on their own in about two months.
[[Image:Ootheca.jpg|right|thumb|90px|Comparison of size between Oriental and Brown Banded Cockroach Oothecae]]
Oriental cockroaches can be harder to get rid of than other roaches. Although adults can be fairly easily killed by the application of residual insecticide, the insecticides can get washed away, and two months later females can hatch new larvae.
[[Image:Mouse-roach-pellet.jpg|left|thumb|80px|The Oriental cockroach fecal pellet is on the bottom and the mouse dropping on the top]]
Roaches leave fecal marks, which are larger and drier when water is scarce. It is difficult to see in the photo, but Oriental cockroaches' fecal pellets have lines running along the length of the dropping which is caused by pads in the rectum which extract water out of the pellet before it is ejected. The arrow shows where one of the lines runs along the length of the roach dropping.
== Comparison of the three common roaches ==
{| class="wikitable"|center
|-
! Roach
! German
! Oriental
! American
|-
| Size(mm)
| 12-15 mm
| 25-30 mm
| 28-43 mm
|-
| Habitat
| heated buildings - optimum 32 degrees Celsius
| 20-29 °C
| same as German
|-
| Nymphal development time
| 6-12 weeks
| 6-12 months
| 4 months - 15 months
|-
| Life Span
| 6-9 months
| 1.5 years
| 1.5 years
|-
|able to fly?
|no
|no
|yes
|}
==References==
{{Unreferenced|date=March 2007}}
{{commons}}
{{wikispecies}}
[[Category:Cockroaches]]
[[ca:Blatta orientalis]]
[[de:Gemeine Küchenschabe]]
[[es:Blatta orientalis]]
[[fr:Blatte orientale]]
[[nl:Oosterse kakkerlak]]
[[pl:Karaluch]]
[[pt:Barata-oriental]]
[[sv:Orientalisk kackerlacka]]