Cockroaches brownish black or tan, shiny flat bodied foul smelling insects  are well known and are found all over world . More than 3000 species of cockroaches are known to occur throught out the world. They are very active at night or in dark places. Their filthy habits, repulsive appearance, odour and possibility that they spread diseases like Tuberculosis, Cholera, Leprosy, Dysentery and Typhoid make them very dangerous. They destroy food, damage fabrics and book-bindings and contaminate the materials over which they crawl by their excreta.

The cockroaches do not lay their eggs singly. They are laid in groups, each group being covered by a hard covering matrix.

Cockroaches frequently enter into the houses through small inlets crevices, hole and openings of floors, walls doorframes, spaces behind wooden furniture. It is desirable that wooden utensils or furniture’s are avoided in the houses. Modern practice is to use marble-made utensils like shelves, cupboards etc. Special attention be given to water and drainage pipe. Several observations have shown the city-drainage-systems are most important breeding sites for American Cockroaches. 

(A)                      American Cockroach.

(B)                      German Cockroach.

(C)                      Oriental Cockroach.

(D)                      Wood Cockroach.