Difference Between Asian Cockroach and German Cockroach

Asian Cockroach vs German Cockroach
 

Out of 4,500 species of cockroaches, there are only 30 species living around humans, and only four of that are serious pests. Asian and German cockroaches are two of those four species of serious pests and are economically important. These two species are not identical, but there are both differences and similarities between them that are interesting to know. However, the Asian species has been nearly identified as the German cockroach due to the very similar identification features. Therefore, it would be worth to go through the presented information in this article about the characteristics of these insects and to follow the comparison between the two.

Asian Cockroach

Asian cockroach, Blatella assahinai, is an average sized cockroach with a body length of about 16 millimetres. They are tan to brown coloured insects, but the body colour is lighter than dark. They have membranous wings those extend slightly out of the abdomen, and the forewings are not as hardened as in many other domestic cockroaches. Although they are called with the adjective Asian, their distribution is not restricted to Asia. In fact, the Asian cockroaches have been distributed throughout the world including the Americas. As these cockroaches prefer to be around human habitations, they have been carried unintentionally or passively in the baggage to all parts of the world when people travel from place to place. It could be described as a mode of passive distribution. Asian cockroaches prefer to live outside, and they would not go inside the leaf litter unless in extreme cold or a red-hot climate. According to the observations made by scientists and others, Asian cockroaches are strong flyers and easily get attracted to light. In fact, it is stated that they can fly as good as moths. Since they can live outside human habitations, their predatory or parasitoid behaviours on the pest insect eggs are believed to be beneficial for the farmers.

German Cockroach

German cockroach, Blatella germanica, is an average sized cockroach with about 13 – 16 millimetres long body. They have short wings those do not extend beyond the abdomen, and the posterior tip of the abdomen could be seen when they are on the ground. The external appearance of a German cockroach could be from tan to brown and dark brown. However, their appearance is more towards dark than for lighter. As it is common for many cockroaches to live around human habitations, the distribution of German cockroach is cosmopolitan and not restricted to Germany. They have originated in Africa and later distributed throughout the world with the expansion of human habitation around the world. The most concerning factor about the German cockroach is that their seriousness in being a pest for the human. As it is stated in many reports, these animals give the other cockroaches a bad name. That is mainly due to their preference to live around human habitations, and inability to live in the open environment. German cockroaches are mostly found from the hot-weathered areas of the world, but sometimes they have been recorded inside homes in the cold areas.