What can you do if there are cockroaches in your apartment?

The appearance of insects such as cockroaches in an apartment cannot, of course, be called a pleasant phenomenon.

These are one of the most common pests - insects in human homes and commercial premises.

Longhorned beetles are carriers of several dozen pathogenic microorganisms and spoil all the products available in the house.

The result of your fight against cockroaches will depend on how quickly you reacted and took a number of necessary measures.

What actions should you take if you see Prussians in your apartment? What methods and means exist for their effective destruction? This article is devoted to these issues.

Where do cockroaches come from in an apartment, and why are even clean housewives not immune to the problem?

According to scientists, cockroaches were one of the first inhabitants of the Earth. They successfully coexisted with dinosaurs. While the huge green lizards died under the influence of natural conditions, the insects steadfastly endured all the disasters. With the development of human civilization, the conditions for living and breeding of cockroaches have become simply heavenly - cozy houses, basements, leftover food, water, garbage disposal, and so on. But man is not a dinosaur. For people, being around insects is not only unpleasant, but also dangerous. How and why do cockroaches appear in an apartment?

While cockroaches cause disgust, disgust, fear and a whole range of negative emotions in the average person, researchers have a genuine interest in these creatures. These are, without exaggeration, amazing insects. Just look at the following facts about cockroaches.

Cockroaches in the apartment: sources of the problem

To defeat the “enemy”, you need to collect as much information about him as possible. First of all, it is important to understand where cockroaches come from in an apartment and why they stay in it. The sources of the problem can be both internal and external.

Where do they come from?

The opinion that cockroaches are a sign of unsanitary conditions is only partly true. Even the cleanest housewife is not immune from such a misfortune. Typically, pests enter your home from four main sources.

Where are pests comfortable?

If cockroaches have settled in the neighborhood, this means that they are comfortable in the apartment. There are four factors that attract pests to human homes.

Fast reaction

Unfortunately, hoping that this is a “vagrant” cockroach is at least careless. Usually one cockroach that catches our eye means that these pests have already settled in the apartment. But there is no need to panic. There are effective and safe methods that allow you to get rid of cockroaches in simple and fairly quick ways.

The most effective way is to seek help from a professional disinfection service in your city. They have the appropriate equipment and drugs, the effectiveness of which has been confirmed not only by the manufacturer, but also by dozens of successful treatments. Disinfection services will not only destroy cockroaches, but will also take measures to prevent further reproduction and increase in population size. After all, the larger the population, the more difficult it is to fight it, and the costs of removing cockroaches become higher. Therefore, quick action is crucial here.

Know the enemy by sight: common types

Surely, having noticed a pest running around the apartment, no one will have the desire to look at what a cockroach looks like. There will be no possibility, since the insect will run away at the speed of light as soon as it senses danger. A table that contains information about the types of cockroaches will help you recognize your enemy by sight.

Table - Types of cockroaches in the apartment

Traditional methods of getting rid of cockroaches

Folk methods of fighting cockroaches are based on age-old wisdom. By observing the behavior of insects and identifying their main triggers, people have figured out how to get rid of cockroaches for good. This is not to say that 100% success is guaranteed. Methods sometimes misfire. But if you are anti-chemical and don't trust ultrasound, take note of these options.

Freezing out an apartment

Pests do not tolerate cold well. At temperatures around 0C they feel comfortable, at temperatures below zero they begin to worry. If the thermometer drops to -10C, the parasites do not survive. Also, the entire clutch dies, new individuals are not hatched.

How to remove cockroaches by freezing?

• Open the windows wide.
• Turn off heating appliances.
• Place parasite-infested items on the balcony.
• If possible, leave the room: it will be cold.

After half an hour or an hour you can return: the insects are dead.

This method is environmentally friendly and simple, but does not always work. In the summer, when temperatures are above zero, freezing will not work for obvious reasons. It will not be possible to “keep out” insects in an apartment with central heating. Please note: cockroaches are smart and agile. If there is at least one heated zone in the apartment, all the parasites will flock there. Pests are ready to wait for warming for an hour, two, ten hours - as long as necessary. Even if a few cockroaches survive, they will breed around the apartment again.

Lack of water

Water is one of the few critically important products. Without it, a cockroach cannot survive. The method is effective and always works. Here's what to do.

• Close all taps.
• Wipe off any remaining moisture.
• Make sure there are no leaks.

The pests will either die from dehydration or find another habitat.

But the result cannot be achieved in a few days. You will have to wait three to four months before the lack of moisture affects the cockroach’s body. Because and a person cannot live without using water for so long, this method cannot be used in residential premises. But if you are planning to go on a long vacation or go to relatives for temporary residence, use this method. When you return, you will not find a single parasite.

Kerosene

This flammable mixture does not kill insects: they will not drink kerosene, and the chitinous shell is impervious to the action of the components. But the smell of petroleum product is guaranteed to repel pests. What to do? Take a thick cloth and put on gloves. You will need a lot of kerosene: buy at least 500 ml. Coat all corners, baseboards, furniture joints, gaps between floorboards or parquet ribs. Treat the interior parts and shelves in cabinets, drawers, and cabinets. Pay attention to areas behind furniture and household appliances. Cockroaches often hide under bathtubs, sinks, behind trash cans, and under water pipes. Treat the walls and floor there.

The method is effective, but has specifics.

• The smell of kerosene is unpleasant not only to cockroaches. People feel it too - and are rarely happy.
• The aroma remains in the apartment for a long time. If you are allergic, anaphylactic shock is possible.
• Furniture, clothing, and personal belongings are also saturated with the kerosene smell.
• The mixture is flammable. Even a small spark leads to a fire.

If you decide to use kerosene, work only in PPE and stay away from open flames.

Homemade traps

To control the cockroach population you will need three things:

• potent bait (honey, yeast, sweet juice, sugar, etc.);
• sunflower/butter oil, petroleum jelly or similar substance;
• bottle with a narrow, high neck.

Place bait at the bottom of the bottle. Lubricate the neck with oil or Vaseline. Leave the bottle upright. The best place for her is a dark, quiet part of the apartment. Because Cockroaches are most active at night, so you should use bait at this time of day. The next morning you will find parasites trapped at the bottom of the bottle.

If you don’t have a bottle, you can use tape, grease the cardboard with long-drying glue, syrup or thick honey. The cockroach's legs will stick to the substance and the pests will remain in place.

What's wrong with this option? It is impossible to exterminate the entire population. Cockroaches are smart, quickly understand what's going on, and learn to avoid traps. Also, the bait will not catch parasite eggs. Those. you can catch all the adults of the colony, but when the young cockroaches are born, everything will happen again.

Traps can be used as a preventative method. A scout cockroach that gets into an apartment by mistake will die at the bottom of a bottle and will not have time to inform its relatives about the location it has found.

Flavors

Insects navigate by smell, so their sense of smell is subtle. The aromas of food and drink attract them, while strong odors repel them. How to get cockroaches out of your apartment forever? Use:

• flowers (geranium and chamomile are ideal);
• aromatic oils (spruce, eucalyptus, rosemary);
• ground petrium;
• ammonia.

Fresh flowers decorate the windowsill and make the apartment cozy.

Aromatic oils have a beneficial effect on health and soothe. They also disinfect the air in the apartment. Aroma oil is recommended for use during periods of outbreak of infectious diseases and for year-round prevention.

Petrium powder is made from dried aster plants. It smells like chrysanthemums or asters. Fans of these colors will like this method.

Ammonia is a medical preparation. It is used to bring the patient to his senses. In small doses, it causes a surge of vigor and relieves drowsiness.

The problem is that aromatic oils, floral scents and ammonia cannot be sniffed 24 hours a day. You need to ventilate the apartment and breathe fresh air. Reducing the concentration of aromatic substances also reduces the level of protection.

It is also important to understand: anti-cockroach aromatherapy works as a prevention. Those. it is not suitable for baiting the population. Geranium, rosemary and petrium will not allow pests to enter the apartment, but if a cockroach crawls inside and is satisfied, the smell will not scare it. But in 99% of cases, a person will get a headache from constant strong aromas. The manifestation of an allergy is also possible.

Boric acid

How to remove cockroaches from an apartment with boric acid? After all, the chemical compound emits a strong aroma, and parasites are sensitive to it! There are several ways to eliminate the smell.

• Boiled egg + boiled potatoes. Mix the ingredients with the acid and roll into balls.
• Potatoes + kefir. Crush boiled potatoes with kefir and add boric acid.
• Raw yolk + sugar + flour + water + acid. This is not only a good way to neutralize the aroma, but also a food bait for cockroaches.
• Starch + vanilla + powdered sugar. Sugar and vanilla give off a strong odor that pests like. To roll into balls, add clean, unflavored water to the mixture.

Any of the mixtures listed will work. Make “pies” from the ingredients and spread the poison in places where cockroaches live: near trash cans, under the kitchen sink, in the bathroom, in the ventilation shaft. Parasites will gladly try a poisoned treat. Boric acid destroys the chitinous shell, paralyzes the pest’s nervous system, and blocks the respiratory tract. Result 100%.

But remember: acid is also harmful to mammals. If there are animals or children in the house, do not use this method. Unlike the gel, there is no bitterness in the “pies” with boric acid. The child will easily eat the treat - and maybe more than one.

Important : after any insecticidal treatment - with natural or chemical preparations - carry out a general cleaning of the apartment. Throw out the trash, wash the dishes, put food in sealed bags, and agree with your neighbors on a schedule for keeping the hallway clean. If you do this, you will get rid of cockroaches forever.

Why are there so many of them: life expectancy and reproductive characteristics

If you see a lonely running cockroach and squash it with a slipper, do not rush to celebrate your victory. You won the battle, but not the war. The appearance of a lone “guest” indicates that a whole colony of pests lives somewhere in a secluded place. And they probably managed to lay eggs, from which new insects will appear after some time. To successfully fight cockroaches, you will have to take a short course in biology.

Life cycle

Cockroaches live from four months to four years, depending on external conditions. Human factors can significantly affect life expectancy. Characteristics of the life stages of insects are given in the table.

Table - Life cycle of a cockroach

The female as a source of danger

Cockroaches reproduce sexually. Insects undergo real mating games, during which the males begin to vigorously shake their wings and even fly low to please the female. The latter chooses the most worthy “father” for her offspring. After fertilization, she lays 15-20 eggs, which are securely stored in the protective capsule ootheca. The female carries this pouch with her everywhere for two weeks. At the last stage, the female leaves the ootheca in a secluded place, where after a few days new cockroaches hatch.

Throughout her life, the female lays an average of 20 oothecae, which is equivalent to 300-400 eggs, the survival rate of which is 90-95%. In this case, a female, fertilized once, retains the male’s genetic material in her body and can continue to reproduce independently through parthenogenesis. Thus, if you want to defeat cockroaches, you need to try to destroy the females, which can be recognized by such signs.

Impact on human health

Cockroaches are not an aesthetic problem, but a sanitary problem, so their appearance in your home should not be taken lightly. To understand how dangerous cockroaches are in an apartment, think about what kind of garbage dumps and sewers they were carried through before they got into the house. By contacting food and hygiene items, crawling into the nose and ears, as well as biting a person, pests can cause the following health problems:

If the fight against cockroaches does not bring results, then the source of the problem is somewhere outside your home. It is important to understand where cockroaches come from in an apartment. It is quite possible that they are coming from the entrance. While pest control in personal living space is the responsibility of the owner, the housing and communal services service must poison cockroaches in common areas in an apartment building (entrance, basement, garbage chute, attic). This service is included in the tariff, which is paid monthly. If within a month the utilities do not respond to your request or refuse, you have the right to file a complaint with the sanitation station, the city housing and communal services department, and even the prosecutor’s office.

Reviews: “You just need to find the place where they nest...”

Cockroaches appeared in our apartment after the neighbors started poisoning them and they moved in with us (This is very unpleasant, of course, but what can you do! We immediately bought a pencil and anointed all the places through which they could get to us and thus got rid of them.

I have already removed cockroaches from both myself and my mother. You just need to find the place where they nest. They lived in my kitchen, behind the microwave in the power supply. And on my mother’s shelf in the bathroom, which was near the radiator. They love warmth, look for a heat source in the room where they are most often found. Well, as soon as you find it, any means will be good. Out of fear, I sprayed them all with air freshener, and then with a slipper.

Source

Chemicals

Most often, apartment owners prefer to poison cockroaches with chemicals. And this is logical. This method has significant advantages.

• Simplicity . Chemical preparations are already ready for use. As a last resort, you need to prepare a working solution, but the process is simple, even a non-professional can handle it.
• Availability . Insecticides are sold in household chemical departments. Buying the right amount of the chosen drug is not a problem. If there is not enough poison, you can buy more.
• Consultation . The salesperson from the chemistry department will recommend the best means for baiting cockroaches. He knows which drugs work best and which ones make no sense to take. The seller has a lot of experience and will recommend an insecticide based on your situation.
• Variability . One chemical didn't work? Take another one. It is impossible to know for sure which drug a cockroach is immune to. To obtain such information, it is necessary to examine the DNA of a representative of the colony in the laboratory, but this is hardly possible. And if not, how to remove cockroaches? The experimental method is the most effective.

Here are some remedies that help get rid of cockroaches.

Aerosols

This method gained popularity back in Soviet times. Aerosols are sold in sealed containers with a spray nozzle. You press a button and the insecticide is sprayed over the surface. The chemical has many advantages.

• It is 100% ready to use, no need to mix with water and prepare a working solution.
• Always at hand. Found a cockroach nest? Take the spray and spray. You can bring it anywhere in the apartment.
• Low level of danger. The aerosol is usually class 3-4. It is harmless to pets and humans, but to cause serious damage, you need to deliberately spray the mucous membrane with a large amount of the drug.

The chemistry works quickly. Modern developments (“Raid”, “Combat”, etc.) are devoid of a pungent odor. Classic dichlorvos has an unpleasant and persistent aroma that takes a long time to dissipate.

Although the spray has many advantages, do not forget about the disadvantages. And the main drawback: to get rid of cockroaches, you must first find their habitat. It's not a fact that this is possible. It is not a fact that the found zone is the only refuge for parasites. Keep this in mind when deciding how to deal with cockroaches in your apartment.

Gels

The gel helps remove cockroaches from premises where people constantly live. The drug contains attractants - components that awaken the parasite's appetite. The cockroach chooses the gel, even if there is meat or sugar nearby. Those. you poison parasites and keep food intact.

Benefits of the gel:

• Strong action. One drop is enough to poison an insect.
• Prolonged effect. The cockroach becomes infected itself and also brings poison to the colony.
• Low hazard class. The gel is suitable for treating rooms where small children live.
• Effect on the reproductive system of the pest. If a cockroach has already developed immunity to an insecticide, you should not wait for it to die. But such an individual will no longer be able to reproduce.
• Taking into account the behavioral characteristics of insects. Cockroaches are cannibals; they eat dead relatives. If the parasite has been poisoned, the poison from its body enters the body of the members of the colony.

The peculiarity of this drug is its flavoring additive. After tasting the gel, a person feels a strong bitterness on the tongue. This is a defense mechanism: children, animals, people with special needs will definitely not want to eat the chemical.

But this does not mean that gel particles will not remain on clothing, household items or wool. Therefore, droplets of the gel are placed in hard-to-reach places on substrates (this makes it easier to remove the chemical upon completion of disinfestation). After exterminating the parasites, you need to do a general cleaning. And check again for signs of cockroach activity in the apartment. The gel does not affect parasite eggs. This means that when the young individuals hatch, the treatment must be started again.

Traps

How to get rid of cockroaches in an apartment without harming yourself and your loved ones? Traps are a good option. The main advantages of this method:

• Variability. There are many traps in the market. The most famous are “Combat”, “Raptor” and “Argus”, but others can be found.
• 100% safety. Only a cockroach, bedbug or other pest of similar size can penetrate the trap house. Children and animals will not even be able to see the poison.
• Choice of price. There are inexpensive options. You will like them if you still have doubts about the convenience and effectiveness of the trap and need to test the drug. If you decide to resort to this particular method and are looking for a super-effective option, buy a more expensive trap.

The system is simple: in the house there is a chemical impregnated with an attractant. The cockroach gets into the trap, eats the tasty bait and becomes deadly. He will live for a long time and will have time to infect his relatives. Soon all the cockroaches will die.

The method is convenient and safe, but there are nuances. The trap is not designed to kill large populations. It is suitable for the initial stage of infection: during this period the parasites have not had time to reproduce, it costs nothing to kill all the individuals. If there are a lot of cockroaches, the trap is useless. We must also not forget about the danger to animals. If your pet sees a poisoned cockroach crawling on the floor, it will eat it. This will not lead to death, but discomfort is guaranteed. Traps are suitable for homeowners who do not have pets.

Crayons

An old, but not the best way to get rid of cockroaches. The famous “Mashenka” is suitable only for processing doorways, ventilation, shafts, etc. It is impossible to “paint” the entire apartment with chalk. And because it leaves a noticeable whitish with a yellow tint, and it looks unaesthetic. The task of the chalk is preventive treatment. The chemical will not allow cockroaches into the apartment if they are running away from the insecticidal treatment of neighbors.

This method, however, has advantages:

• Simplicity . Using a chalk is not difficult, anyone can handle the task.
• Availability . “Mashenka” is sold in all household chemical stores.
• Low price . This is the most budget-friendly way to treat an apartment for cockroaches.
• Confidence . The chalk leaves a noticeable mark. You know for sure that you have treated the surface and have not missed an area.

Powders

Another old method from the times of the USSR. Granular powder is scattered in places where pests move and feed. The chemical contains an attractant, so parasites choose it rather than food. It works flawlessly: pests die almost on the spot.

Antiparasitic powder is chosen for three reasons:

• Harmlessness . The chemical has a low hazard class and is harmless to mammals.
• Simplicity . It does not need to be prepared; it is enough to sprinkle the granules in the places where parasites live, feed, and move.
• Obviousness . You know exactly how much of the chemical was eaten, in which place there were more cockroaches, when the appetite of the population (and, therefore, the colony) decreased.

But there are also disadvantages. And the most unpleasant thing: the effectiveness of the powder is low. Initially, the product was not super effective, and since almost every family in the USSR used it, the cockroaches acquired immunity to the poison. It is unlikely that the entire colony will die out from eating Phenaxin. Another drawback is its lack of aesthetics. The powder lies on the floor or windowsill. Even if you carefully fold it into a slide, it’s easy to scatter the granules. Two to three days after the start of processing, they will be everywhere. And when there are no cockroaches left, the granules will be found in the cracks between the floorboards, under the baseboard, under the legs of the refrigerator, etc.

Ultrasound

An ultrasonic repeller is a convenient, eco-friendly way to get rid of cockroaches in your apartment forever. Here are its advantages.

• No poison. The technology is based on ultrasonic waves that cannot be swallowed by mistake. They do not stain the floor and walls like gel, and do not roll around the floor like granules.
• Simultaneity. You simply buy a repeller once in your life and install it in a convenient place. After a long period of time, you will need to change the battery. After this, you can forget about the device again.
• The repeller exterminates cockroaches and serves as a warning to them. Pests are sensitive to ultrasonic waves. They run away as soon as they hear danger. Those. Even getting close to an apartment is difficult for parasites.

Alas, there are also disadvantages. Repellers work not only on cockroaches, but also on animals. Birds are also at risk. Dogs, cats, hamsters, parrots suffer from ultrasound as much as pests. And even if you don’t have a pet, neighbors with dogs definitely won’t thank you for such a purchase. Another nuance: ultrasound does not bend around obstacles, but is reflected from them. Those. part of the area may remain uncovered, and cockroaches will feel comfortable there. The waves are invisible, you will not know about your mistake. It's also worth keeping the price in mind. An ultrasonic repeller is very expensive.

Scout cockroach in an apartment: how to understand how it works, what it looks like, what to do and how to neutralize it

Insects live at the site in large numbers. They constantly reproduce, thereby increasing the size of an already large group. In each such “association” of pests there are individuals that perform the functions of scouts. Accordingly, this name was assigned to individual insects. The scout cockroach goes much further than its group to find more suitable living conditions. It is not always necessary to fight such pests, because they can move to other territories on their own if they do not find what they were looking for.

In case of possible infection, it is still better to take a number of measures.

Causes of sewer cockroaches

Sewer cockroaches.

One cockroach means trouble. He is a scout, which means that the colony is somewhere nearby, and it is looking for a new place to live. The main reasons for the appearance of unwanted neighbors include:

• high humidity;
• poor cleaning of neighbors, leading to the accumulation of food scraps;
• the presence of poorly cleaned garbage chutes in high-rise buildings;
• open holes in garbage disposal pipes.

How do they get into the premises?

Like other species, sewer cockroaches live on the streets. And when they become uncomfortable, living conditions or weather change, they look for another place and end up in the sewers. It's dark and warm there, and it's easy to survive with enough food.

As they become established, they move through dry sewer pipes and lay larvae. They do not stay there for long, and the population quickly moves towards residential areas.

The biggest problem with sewer cockroaches is that they are constantly looking to colonize new territory.

A scout cockroach in an apartment - who it is, why it came, how it acts. Photo

Scout is a conventional name for the same insects as the rest of the group. The cockroach performs special functions: it enters a new territory, studies the living conditions here, looks for food and water. In addition, it evaluates environmental parameters. Scouts may stay in the apartment for a while. They do this precisely for the purpose of assessing the parameters of their potential housing.

The behavioral characteristics of such insects are no different from those of other individuals in the group from which they came. Most often, a scout comes to people's houses alone. It also looks non-specific: 3 legs, antennae, a chitinous shell of a characteristic color (corresponds to the characteristics of its species), wings (if characteristic of individuals of the group), bristles on the legs, cerci, gnawing mouthparts.

becomes interested in the living conditions in the apartment, then other individuals will soon come.

But it happens that the appearance of a lone pest is a temporary phenomenon. If he does not find anything interesting for himself and his group, he will leave the home and move on. This explains why sometimes insects live in all neighbors, but one of the apartments is avoided. As a result, it is enough to maintain the sanitary condition of the house at the proper level.

Cockroach under the sink

Can cockroaches jump? Do cockroaches fly?

Usually, when people hear the word “cockroaches,” they have not very pleasant associations: omnivorous pests that smell specifically, run fast, and live at someone else’s expense. The most famous of them are synanthropic, cohabiting with humans - large black cockroaches and “Prussians”. They are the ones who successfully support the established unflattering stereotype. In fairness, it is worth noting that this common view of numerous arthropods is rather narrow.

In reality, the biology of cockroaches is incredibly diverse. As well as their appearance and habits, which are not at all limited to existing stereotypes.

Cockroaches are a large class of representatives with a similar body structure. They are distinguished by a powerful gnawing apparatus, which allows them to feed on any solid food. Their thin mesh wings are folded like a fan under dense, parchment-like protective wing covers. In many species, wings are rudimentary or absent altogether.

! Today, more than 4.6 thousand species are known from the suborder of cockroaches proper. And more than 7.5 thousand species of the cockroach class. About fifty species representatives live in the countries of the former USSR alone. Moreover, only a few of them come at the expense of people.

Synanthropic cockroaches, as a rule, do not fly. In rare cases, males can make short flights or dive from a height using their wings spread to soften the impact of the fall. But there are also species whose representatives use their wings for their intended purpose: they flutter like butterflies and even make voyages over considerable distances.

Flightless cockroaches

1. Among them, the Philippine cockroach Prosoplecta semperi stands out - a master of camouflage. It is quite easy to mistake it for an ordinary “ladybug”. Cunning mimicry helps it avoid the threat of being eaten by its natural enemies - birds, spiders, rodents, etc. In the tropics, it feeds on plant foods and lives in the soil litter, only occasionally climbing to the surface.
2. The tiny, about 3-4 mm long Texas ant-loving cockroach Attaphila fungicola lives exclusively in ant nests. Females, as a rule, are wingless, and males have brachypterous (significantly reduced, reduced) wings. The species feeds on mushrooms raised by ants, and travels on winged female hosts when they go on their mating flight.

For reference ! The phenomenon of brachypterism is especially common in insects and birds inhabiting mountains, deserts and polar regions. In conditions of constantly blowing winds, insects move in space along with air currents, and birds simply walk on the ground. Therefore, their wings are greatly shortened, practically undeveloped or absent altogether.

Philippine cockroach

Winged cockroaches - “turtles”

1. In the dry, hot climate of Asia, desert “turtle” cockroaches live and thrive. One of them, the Egyptian Polyphaga aegyptiaca, lives in Dagestan. Females of this species are much wider than males and have denser covers. The rounded body shape of the miniature female “turtles” gives them a clear resemblance to known amphibians. They are characterized by sexual dimorphism - the presence of a flying machine in males and the absence of such in females. During its life, the Egyptian “turtle” makes 3–5 clutches and lives up to four years, which makes it a long-liver among arthropods. Cockroaches have adapted to survive differences in day and night temperatures from +40 to 0 C and even lower. Egyptian cockroaches feed on organic remains of various origins: dry leaves, animal feces, etc. During the day, “turtles” escape the heat in the burrows of gerbils and jerboas or burrow into the soil under bushes.
2. A close relative of the Egyptian cockroach is the Central Asian cockroach - “Turtle” of Saussure (Polyphaga saussurei). It is sometimes called the sand (velvet) cockroach. The species is interesting because in extreme conditions it reproduces parthenogenetically, without the participation of a sexual partner. This is a fairly large insect - almost 5 cm in size. When frightened, the cockroach develops white shoots along the edges that emit a smell.

What types of cockroaches most often get into apartments?

In people's homes in Russia, red and black individuals are common.

However, both varieties have their own characteristics and habits. For example, blacks more often live in private houses and on the first floors of apartments. They crawl out of the sewer. But red-haired individuals can appear in different apartments, on any floors. In addition, they are gradually replacing representatives of the black cockroach species, so they are more widespread.

Red cockroach in the apartment

Search for nesting sites

To rid your home of these unpleasant insects, you must first of all find all their nesting places.

The most effective and easiest way to detect Prussians is with bait. Place some food on a plate, place it in the kitchen and turn off the lights. A little later, when you turn on the light, you will see insects crawling in different directions.

You can find the location of cockroaches along the paths of dark brown dots - these are excrement left by barbels.

Dried skins (chitinous coverings), which can be seen on or near food, under the sink, on dishes or wallpaper, will also help you find out where Prussians may nest.

If the population of cockroaches is large, you may notice the appearance of a specific smell in the apartment.

Having discovered longhorned beetles in your home, you need to start removing them as soon as possible, because they are very prolific and their numbers are growing every day.

Can a cockroach be alone in an apartment?

Yes, there is such a possibility. We're talking about scouts.

crawling everywhere where cockroaches do not yet live.

But first, such individuals must find a suitable place. Only then do the rest come here (a smaller group than lives on the main object, may consist of several dozen insects). But this is a rare case. As a rule, homeowners notice individual individuals that have gone out to hunt for food at night. At this time, the apartment may already be infected.

Red cockroach on the surface of a cutting board

Reproduction and life cycle

The reproduction rate of insects depends on the species. Some individuals carry the ootheca with them, others leave it soon after it has been formed in the female’s body. The duration of development can be 4-6 weeks. It depends on the living conditions. When the female hides the ootheca (this is a leathery sac, a shell inside which embryos are formed that develop into larvae), she soon moves on to the next clutch.

she puts off several dozen swelling.

The main stages of cockroach development:

Larvae may look completely different from adult cockroaches, but most often they show the basic characteristics corresponding to the species (as, for example, in red and black house pests).

Cockroach larva

Professional Services

If home methods and store-bought products do not help, then the extermination of cockroaches should still be entrusted to professional services. They have special equipment, qualified personnel and access to high-quality safe drugs. The list of disinfestation measures mainly consists of the following stages:

1. initial survey, which determines the extent of the infestation; 2. selection of suitable methods for exterminating cockroaches; 3. carrying out disinfestation.

It is much more effective to carry out the treatment together with neighbors and in common areas.

What to do if you see a cockroach at home. How to neutralize a scout

To prevent these insects from bringing others, you need to create unsuitable conditions for them:

Immediately clean with insecticides

Before processing, the room must be prepared. First of all, you need to wash the floor, further steps:

Processing can be done using different types of tools:

If you miss the cockroach, expect an invasion. Folk methods of struggle. Recipes.

You can see insects because they crawl out at night.

If a scout appears and is caught, it is recommended to act immediately. Safe household products:

Combined approach

This solution involves the need to use different means: folk, chemical, physical, as well as temperature influence on individuals (when cockroaches are destroyed by treatment with steam or boiling water).

You can act sequentially

or use different methods at once.

This approach increases the effectiveness of control, because if the cockroaches have survived the effects of the insecticide (they have developed resistance to them), then they will not tolerate steam treatment or the use of boric acid.

Chemicals

Cleaning and folk remedies alone are not enough to rid your apartment of cockroaches forever.

To combat Prussians, you will certainly need to use various insecticidal preparations. Let's talk about the most popular chemicals.

Aerosols and sprays

Today, people use aerosols less and less to kill barbels, since there is a risk of the sprayed product getting into the human respiratory tract and the likelihood that cockroaches will be able to adapt to it.

You will have to use different aerosols each time so that the insects do not become accustomed to the same composition.

Gel preparations

Such products are the most widely used means to combat cockroaches.

The gel necessarily contains a toxic active substance and a fragrant bait, which attracts pests. It is applied in the form of solid strips or tracks of drops in places where insects are most concentrated.

A number of gel preparations are bitter, which can scare away pets. But it is better to refrain from using the gel in places accessible to them.

Traps

Today, you can buy various types of cockroach traps in specialized stores.

Or you can make it yourself from small boxes in which you need to make one small inlet hole.

Inside such a device you need to put a fragrant bait. Every day, caught cockroaches need to be shaken out. A toilet is best suited for this.

An industrially manufactured electric trap kills all Prussians entering it with a discharge of electric current.

Glue houses

This device looks like a house, inside of which there is a tasty and aromatic bait.

But its walls are covered with adhesive tape, to which all the paws of the long-horned beetle, attracted by the pleasant aroma, are glued.

As a result, the insect dies. It is surprising that the parasites that came later are not afraid of the corpse of their relative in the house.

They also stick to the tape and die. Having placed such a device in the evening, in the morning you can see that it is filled to the top with dead cockroaches.