- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Arthropoda
- Class: Insecta
- Order: Blattodea
- Family: Blattidae
- Genus: Periplaneta
- Species: Periplaneta Americana
17 American Cockroach Facts for Kids
- The American cockroach is a common species of cockroaches.
- The binomial name for the America cockroach is Periplaneta Americana.
- The American cockroach is the largest species of common cockroaches.
- The name American cockroach is deceiving, they’re actually a native species of Africa and the Middle East.
- The American cockroach was introduced to the Americas in the 17th century.
- The American cockroach can be on found worldwide on every continent.
- The American cockroach has a reddish brown color with some yellowish color on their pronotum.
- There are three stages of development for an American cockroach, and they are egg, nymph and adult.
- The American cockroach is an omnivore and will eat virtually anything.
- The average lifespan of an American cockroach is a little less than two years.
- The average length of an adult American cockroach is 1.6 inches.
- The fastest an American cockroach was recorded running was 3.4 miles per hour, or about 50 body lengths per second.
- An American cockroach nymph (young) has the capabilities to regenerate a limb.
- The American cockroach is considered a pest. It’s one of the most common types of pests found in a manmade building.
- The American cockroach is a disease vector and can transfer disease-causing bacteria, like Salmonella, and contaminate food preparation areas, resulting in humans getting food poisoning.
- Humans with asthma can have an asthma attack trigger by household dust that contains feces and body parts of the American cockroach. This same contaminated dust can also cause an allergic reason in people without asthma.
- A manmade building with an American cockroach infestation can be controlled and eliminated by using insecticides, poison and glue traps.
American Cockroach Pictures
A picture of the different life stages of the American cockroach.Credit: Purdue University
A close-up picture of the head of an American Cockroach.Credit: Redmond Durrell
A picture of fecal smears left behind by the American cockroach.Credit: University of Florida
Additional Resources with American Cockroach Facts
- How to Control American Cockroaches – Learn what the American cockroch is and how to control them on the Pest World website.
- American Cockroach Lifecycle – View pictures of the complete life cycle of the American cockroach.
- American Cockroaches – Discover more crazy facts about the American Cockroach on the PennState website.