The Japanese cockroach is a cold-hardy cockroach whose young can survive freezing and even walk on ice. Native to Japan, it also lives in Korea and China, and it was first found in the U.S. in New York City in 2012. It is also called the Yamato cockroach.
Appearance
- Appearance
- About 0.8–1.4 in (2–3.5 cm) long and dark blackish brown. It is slimmer and less glossy than the smokybrown cockroach.
- Seasonal forms
- Males have wings that reach a little past the tip of the body. Females have short wings that cover only about half the abdomen and cannot fly.
Look-alikes
Smokybrown cockroachValidiblatta fuliginosa
The smokybrown cockroach is larger and glossier. Female Japanese cockroaches are easy to tell apart because their wings reach only the middle of the abdomen.
Why they get mixed upBoth are large, dark brown-black cockroaches, and male Japanese cockroaches have full-length wings.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- woodland
- under bark and rotting wood
- buildings
- Range
- Native to Japan; also found in Korea, China, and the Russian Far East. In the U.S. it has been recorded in New York City, where it was first found at the High Line in 2012 and reported in 2013. It is not confirmed whether that population has become established.
- Preferred conditions
- Lives mostly outdoors under bark and in rotting wood, but can also live in buildings where food is stored, prepared, or served.
Behavior
- Activity
- In lab tests, overwintering survived chilling to about 18–23 °F (−8 to −5 °C) and recovered after being buried in ice, which is unusual for a cockroach.
- Social life
- In lab tests, nymphs living alone or in small groups flicked a sticky fluid from their backs at an aggressive ant and left it helpless.
- Overwintering
- Spends the winter as a nymph, resting under bark or rotting wood. Depending on when it hatches, it takes one or two years to become an adult.
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- NENot EvaluatedNot yet assessed
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