Menu
Home
People
Places
Arts
History
Plants & Animals
Science
Life & Culture
Technology
Reference.org
German cockroach
open-in-new
<p>The German cockroach (<i>Blattella germanica</i>), colloquially known as the croton bug, is a <a href="/facts/Species/oDg6b96r">species</a> of small <a href="/facts/Cockroach/mKJP7W6j">cockroach</a>, typically about 1.1 to 1.6 cm (0.43 to 0.63 in) long. In color it varies from tan to almost black, and it has two dark, roughly parallel, streaks on the <a href="/facts/Prothorax/bFQ0B9UU">pronotum</a> running <a href="/facts/Anatomical_terms_of_location/IpJ1fq2f">anteroposteriorly</a> from behind the head to the base of the wings. Although <i>B. germanica</i> has wings, it can barely fly, although it may glide when disturbed. Of the few species of cockroach that are domestic <a href="/facts/Pest_(organism)/mXGHJ8s7">pests</a>, it probably is the most widely troublesome example. It is very closely related to the <a href="/facts/Blattella_asahinai/xffrgqf3">Asian cockroach</a>, and to the casual observer, the two appear nearly identical and may be mistaken for each other. </p>