German cockroaches live their lives in two stages – the nymph stage and the adult stage, with the nymph stage being as lengthy as the adult stage. It’s important to be able to identify the cockroach nymph, because its presence indicates that there is a full blown roach infestation in the home and they have started reproducing.
The nymph stage
A female German cockroach can give birth to dozens of eggs at once, and each egg will take about a month to hatch. Once the egg has hatched, a microscopic nymph emerges, which cannot be seen with the naked eye. However, this nymph will grow and continue to grow until it reaches the size of an adult. Throughout this process the nymph will molt for over ten times until reaching its final form, and the process will last for as much as a year, which is about half the lifespan of a cockroach. In perfect conditions, the nymph stage is shorter, and the adult phase is longer, but under adverse conditions, the roaches will spend more time in the nymphal stage and die sooner.
Appearance
The nymph looks just like an adult German cockroach, but smaller, and it will be white in coloration after molting. The color will darken however to dark brown or black, until molting and becoming white again. The nymphs also have a light stripe that runs across their backs, unlike adult German cockroaches, which have two stripes.
The German cockroach control process
If you notice nymphs running around your home, you almost certainly have a German cockroach infestation. Not only that, but the infestation has likely been around for a while, because the roaches had time to reproduce and lay their eggs, and the nymphs have grown enough to be visible to the naked eye. This means that you will have to call over a pest control pro to remove the infestation. It’s important to work with a pro when dealing with roaches, because the odds of reinfestation are very high if the cockroach population is not eliminated completely.
A pro will use insecticides and baits to kill all of the roaches inside the home, and certain measures can be implemented to reduce the odds of future infestations. If you have any questions about the cockroach control process, or if you have a cockroach infestation in your home that needs to be removed, contact us today.