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Animal profile

German Cockroach

Blattella germanica

InsectaHeated buildings, particularly kitchens and food-handling areas; not established outdoors in temperate regions

Field profile

The German cockroach is a small pale-brown roach, about 1.5 centimetres long, with two dark stripes on the pronotum. It is the most common indoor pest cockroach worldwide. Females carry the egg case until shortly before hatching, which shields the eggs from many insecticides.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2026-05-29

German Cockroach

Some cockroaches evolved to find glucose bitter

Poison baits sweetened with glucose worked until they stopped. In affected populations, a change in taste neuron wiring makes glucose activate bitter-sensing cells, so the roaches reject sweetened bait, and the trait is heritable.

Read with evidence →

German Cockroach | Daily Animal Facts