What do black cockroaches look like and how to get rid of them?

The appearance of cockroaches in a house or apartment requires an immediate response from residents and taking effective measures to destroy insects. Most often, brown and red cockroaches, the so-called Prusaks, penetrate into the living quarters, but sometimes a less desirable "guest" comes - a black cockroach. How to get rid of an insect, we will consider below.

Black cockroaches are less common in Russia than the Prussians. Basically, we are talking about only one species. His name - Blatta Orientalis. The insect looks like a beetle, has wings, but does not belong to the flying subspecies. Insects are painted black, which immediately differs from the usual red cockroaches... Insects vary in size. The most common parameters are 3 cm in length.

The body of a black cockroach is folded in the same way as its red-haired counterpart. It is covered with a shell of chitin, the head is small, with antennae. It is these antennae that the parasite uses to search for food, detect danger, and much more. A feature of the black look is the ability to run incredibly fast. In this, red cockroaches are inferior to them, although they also move with great speed.

Cockroaches eat everything that is within their reach. They are primarily interested in human food. They love bread, cereals, any meat and fish, sweet foods, eat garbage and even weak representatives of their own kind. In addition, parasites can eat paper and cardboard, they do not even disdain soap. They prefer to drink ordinary water that accumulates in the sink and drain in the kitchen. Without food, a black cockroach can last a whole month.

If you put a male and a female next to each other, then the difference will be obvious. Females are both longer and larger, especially at the time of bearing offspring. After fertilization, the female forms an ooteca - a special capsule containing eggs. After a few days, the ooteca separates from the female's body. If the room is warm and humid, then in a little more than a month the capsule will disintegrate, releasing many small white cockroaches into the wild. Parents do not participate in the development of their offspring, therefore, from the very first minutes, the offspring are left to themselves.

Small cockroaches do not differ in appearance from adults, except that they are white and much smaller in size. Under good conditions, offspring develop quickly, and after a few weeks cockroaches become large adults. Continuing to describe the characteristics of the black species, it is worth noting one interesting feature of these insects: the female needs a partner for fertilization only for the first time, then she will form an ooteca without his participation an unlimited number of times.

Cockroaches often start in people's apartments and houses. Most often they come from neighbors who poison insects. Cockroaches tend to leave such an apartment, crawling through ventilation shafts and drains into neighboring rooms. Basement cockroaches that live in high-rise buildings always come to apartments on the first floor, and from there they spread throughout the house.

If there is a garbage dump next to a residential building, then the arrival of street parasites cannot be avoided.... In conditions of extreme heat and humidity, they will multiply at a catastrophic rate, penetrating into nearby buildings through cracks in structures, vents, and ajar doors. Insects crawl both along the garbage chute and along the sewer systems.

It is interesting that cockroaches are often found not only in the apartment, but also in the country. Insects can get there from a neighboring area. It is also easy to bring them into the house yourself if you buy something from sellers hand-held. A cockroach can be dragged from guests in a bag or clothing without even noticing it.

If cockroaches appear in the room, the owner will know about it almost immediately. So, at first, pests will try to behave imperceptibly. Cockroaches love heat, but they cannot stand light, so they will crawl out in search of food only at night. If the owner of the apartment got up at this time to go to the toilet or drink some water and turn on the light, then the insects will scatter at all possible speed.

By increasing their population, cockroaches become bolder. Some individuals crawl out during the day, crawling along the floor and walls. It is much more common to find them during the day if there is open food or water somewhere. Also, cockroaches in a hundred percent of cases will crawl during the day if there is a bowl of wet animal food on the floor.

In addition to the insects themselves, over time, their waste will appear. Black cockroach excrement can be found in cabinets and drawers behind the refrigerator. There will also be the remains of dead individuals, as well as empty or full ootheca. By increasing their power, insects will gradually move to the bathroom, as well as to the living rooms. Somewhere in one place, they never live, especially if their hordes. The last and most obvious sign is an unpleasant odor that can cause nausea and even a gag reflex in many. The smell appears in the most advanced cases.

It must be remembered that cockroaches are insects that are dangerous to humans... They rarely bite, however, at night they can eat keratinized skin directly from a person. This is an insectophobic nightmare.

Black individuals harm not only food. They can penetrate electrical outlets, which often leads to short circuits. And this is a direct path to fire. Also, cockroaches get into the technique, and from this even the most expensive devices quickly become unusable. Finally, stains from cockroaches and their feces will not add comfort to any environment.

Having found insects at home, you need to start fighting them.... The first step is to carefully examine the room to find the places that the parasites have chosen. Most often these are secluded corners. Cockroaches live behind the stove and refrigerator, under the baseboards, in boxes. Sewer specimens hide behind a washing machine in the bathroom, and if there is an empty area under the bathroom, then they will definitely be there.

After you have found the places where insects have accumulated and the scale of the disaster, you can get to work. The following effective methods will allow you to destroy parasites once and for all.

Means in the form of powders are quite effective, since they act directly on the digestive tract of insects. Cockroaches run for any food, and it is easy to lure them out with something tasty. Following the dosage, the poisoned powder is added to the bait, and then the resulting products are laid out in places where insects accumulate. Having eaten a poisonous product, the cockroach will not die immediately. He will return to the nest and there will already be a contact method to infect his fellows.

The best options for powder products are Cucaracha, Delicia, Fenaxin.

These types of poison have a different principle of action. Some can only affect the intestines, others are contact, and still others combine these two options at once.... It is necessary to spread the gel where there are most of the cockroaches. Most often, such products are applied to skirting boards, next to the stove, in the area under the boxes. Gels not only poison parasites, but also prevent them from moving due to their sticky texture.

Good gels include products such as "Clean House", "Absolute", "Raptor".

Sprays allow you to quickly and effectively exterminate even large colonies of cockroaches. Such insecticidal agents act by contact, due to which the parasite has time to infect a large number of fellows before death. It is necessary to spray aerosols in places where cockroaches accumulate, and also necessarily in water drains. Some models of sprays have a nozzle in the form of a long, thin spout. This is very convenient, because in this case, even the most inaccessible places can be processed.

Sprays such as Raptor, Reid and Dichlorvos Neo have shown themselves best of all.

Crayons are a method that was used back in the USSR. Today it is perhaps one of the most ineffective. It is necessary to use crayon near the nests, as well as in the most common directions of pest movement. By bringing the composition on its paws, the insect will infect others.

You can choose such tools as "Tornado", "Absolute".

Traps can be different in action. There are two most popular options. First - glue bait... Insects go for food, and then stick to the surface of the trap with their paws. They can no longer leave, but they do not die either. These traps should be removed daily and replaced. The downside is that cats and dogs can be very interested in them. Dozens of cockroaches wiggling their whiskers and standing motionless will attract the attention of babies too, so you have to be careful here.

The second type of traps is these are small plastic structures. A bait with a poison is put inside, which has a certain principle of action: contact or food. Models are very good, which contain a special substance that makes cockroaches sterile. The trap, despite its name, does not catch parasites in the literal sense of the word, but having been in it, they either die or lose their ability to reproduce.

Traps such as "Raptor", "Barrier", "Delicia".

These are liquids or powders in concentrated form. They must be diluted with water on their own, strictly following the instructions for use. Today, such funds are considered quite dangerous, since it is easy to not calculate the dosage here.

Cypermethrin, Forsyth and Get - only a few of the known insect control concentrates.

If cockroaches have just begun to dominate the house, then you can try to exterminate them using folk methods. However, it should be borne in mind that most of these techniques will be ineffective in the case of insect dominance. Let's take a look at a few home remedies.

• Boric acid... Previously, this substance was considered the best in the fight against cockroaches. The bait is to be made like this: boric acid is mixed with any sweet food in a ratio of 1 to 1. Next, the resulting poison is laid out in the habitats of pests.
• Ammonia. Cockroaches are afraid of the smell of ammonia, so they can be poisoned with ammonia. A teaspoon of the product is added to a liter of water. Then they are drawn into a spray bottle and sprayed. It is very important to carefully process the places where cockroaches come from: taps, drains, pipes, ventilation shafts.It will not be superfluous to wash the floor with such a tool. It is necessary to repeat the treatments once every couple of days, achieving the complete disappearance of the colony. In addition to ammonia, vinegar will also help scare off parasites. The solution is prepared at the same concentration.
• Homemade trap. Take a deep container and coat the bottom well with sunflower oil. Then put in something sweet. The cockroach, attracted by the delicious smell, will come running to feast on, and then remain inside the trap, since the slippery surface simply will not allow it to get out.
• Freezing... This technique is effective only in the cold season. Wait for a good frost and then turn off the heating. This is imperative, otherwise the pipes may burst. The doors of drawers, bedside tables, cabinets in the room are thrown open. Then all windows are opened. Freeze must be at least 4 hours. It is better to leave the apartment for this time.

Some people who do not accept chemical compounds often advise using herbs with a pungent smell, for example: mint, bay leaf, wormwood, elderberry, and others. They are supposed to be laid out in the house.

To poison black cockroaches, it is not enough just to use one or two remedies. A number of other nuances should also be taken into account.

Here is a step-by-step guide to pest control.

1. Depriving cockroaches of food and water sources... Gather your strength and carefully examine the kitchen. Pour all cereals, as well as sugar and other friable compositions into sealed boxes or bowls. The rubbish bin must always be closed. It is impossible for cockroaches to have access to it. Also, forget about the food bowls on the floor. Water sources also need to be taken under control. If a tap or pipe is leaking, they are urgently repaired. At night, you need to wipe all the washed dishes, as well as the sink. The drain must be closed. All wet items are put into bags.
2. Thorough cleaning... Cleaning the apartment is very important. The first step is to carry out a general cleaning of the kitchen. Clean the stove, refrigerator, sink. Open the cabinets and remove the crumbs from there. Anything that can be pushed aside and walk in this area with a broom or vacuum cleaner. Then clean the bathroom thoroughly and check other rooms to make sure there is no debris, food, or water.
3. Revision of problems... Many apartments have problem areas. It is through them that cockroaches sometimes get into the room. Therefore, it is imperative to patch up cracks, cracks, glue the wallpaper that has moved away from the wall.
4. Use of funds. Having decided on the drug, they begin to use it. However, there are also some nuances here. Most chemicals cannot be used in homes where small children or animals live. Even the most effective remedies are not worth the health of family members. If possible, the cleaned apartment with traps and chemistry must be left for several days. This is the best option for a family.
5. Conversation with neighbors. No matter how desperately you are fighting cockroaches, they can return at any time, because a neighbor will poison them. That is why it is necessary to act in concert. Walk around the neighbors above and below, ask which of them has the same problem. Engage in pest baiting at the same time so that cockroaches do not run from one apartment to another endlessly. You can skip this point if you live in a private house. There, the safety of the premises will depend only on you.

It is also worth remembering your own safety. Vapors of aerosols against insects must not be inhaled, and skin and eyes must also be protected from them. If you use a concentrate, you will need to wear a respirator and gloves. Means such as gasoline, kerosene, varnish, of course, can also drive away insects, but it will be difficult to live in such a room later because of the smell.

If no means help - there are more and more cockroaches, it makes sense to contact the pest control services. Experts will quickly remove insects, and the apartment will not be damaged. Most services today use compounds that are completely harmless to humans and animals.

To prevent black cockroaches from appearing in the house, it is necessary to keep the room clean. Clean your kitchen and bathroom regularly, and do not leave dirty dishes in the sink. Do not allow food debris or crumbs to lie on the stove or floor. Take out the trash can and close the lid tightly at all times, especially at night.

Take care of the general condition of the apartment. Fix the dripping plumbing, and if the pipes are clogged, clean them, because huge sewer cockroaches can come from there, which only specialists can get rid of. Install shallow mesh nets on the ventilation grilles to prevent pests from squeezing through.

It is recommended to wash the floors in the apartment using not only water, but also lemon. You can put a few drops into the liquid, and then walk it across the floors in the rooms. The smell in the apartment will improve, and pests will bypass it.