Parcoblatta pennsylvanica
COCKROACH FAMILY (Blattellidae)

Description
The head and thorax are reddish brown. On the female the abdomen is dark brown to black. Her wingpads are short and incapable of flight. The males’ wings cover the abdomen. The antennae are long and wispy. The females cannot be identified to species from a photo. The males have characteristics to identify them, but these cannot usually be seen because they are covered by the wings. This cockroach was identified by a volunteer expert at the BugGuide website.

Occurrence
These native Wood Cockroaches are probably common in Fontenelle Forest and Neale Woods. They are rarely seen because they live in hollow trees and stumps and under tree bark. The adults are present from May to October. They are attracted to lights and will come readily to bait.

Comments
These roaches eat decaying organic matter. Adults that occasionally wander into houses usually die because of insufficient moisture. This species overwinters as a partially grown nymph. The life cycle of Wood Cockroaches is usually one year, but may be two years. Mating occurs in May and June. A capsule containing up to 32 eggs is deposited in summer. The eggs hatch in about a month. The Nymphs mature the following May or June. Adults are present from May to October. There are 12 species in the genus Parcoblatta in North America.

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