If you live down south, you’ve probably had cockroach trouble before. And if you live in Florida? You may have a cockroach problem every year. And honestly, you can clean as much as you’d like. But that won’t stop the onslaught of these bugs. There’s just something about the constant heat and rain that these guys love. So today, we’ll talk about Lakeland Cockroaches, the species you’ll likely see, and what to do about an infestation in your home.
Lakeland Cockroaches: Overview
Cockroaches are often blamed for poor housekeeping. And it’s true to an extent. Keeping your floors, kitchens, and bathrooms clean will always help. And it gets rid of important food sources for these bugs. However, they can get inside and infest homes in many other ways and for many other reasons. These bugs can hitch rides on infested items, crawl through gaps and cracks, and even swim through sewer drains or exposed pipes. Even more shocking is probably the few that are strong fliers and will come straight in through your window!
But while this is a common pest to have infested your home, they’re one of the hardest to get rid of. Once an infestation is settled in a home, they’ll spread out through its entirety. These pests also often taint food with many kinds of bacteria, such as E. coli. So ignoring them really isn’t an option. And to start with, as always, we’ll cover the most common infesting species there is.
German Cockroaches
Lakeland cockroaches, Tampa cockroaches, anywhere cockroaches really. You’re likely to have to deal with an infestation on some scale from this species at some point. There seems to be a trend with medium-sized roaches being the quickest to infest human buildings, and this species does not stray from that. The adults are easily recognized thanks to their tan coloration and black, horizontal stripes that run down the back of their heads.
And while capable of living outdoors in tropical environments, German cockroaches are one of few insects that are found more commonly in human dwellings than outside of them. These scavengers can feed on nearly anything in your home. And while that includes your regular, normal, edible human food it also includes other things. This can go from bindings on the back of your books to dish soap to old toothpaste left in a bathroom sink.
As I mentioned above, hitchhiking is a common way that roaches move from place to place. Shopping bags, boxes, and other infested items can be the culprit. But even more risky is bringing used furniture or second-hand electronics into their home. In those situations, you may not just be bringing a roach or two into your house, but an entirely ready made nest and infestation!
German cockroaches are fast reproducers, even more so than the already quick family of pests that they belong to. The females only need to mate once in their entire life to get the material they need to produce young. And the adults live roughly one to two hundred days, so one female can become an infestation of her own under the right conditions
American Cockroach
One of the two nicknamed “palmetto bugs” is the American cockroach. Of all the Lakeland cockroaches, this one is easily the largest. These pests can reach up to three inches in length! They’re reddish brown or mahogany in coloration, and the areas behind their heads are outlined with a yellow band, making for easy identification alongside their titanic size.
Unlike the German cockroaches I mentioned above, this species can fly. Both males and females can glide over large distances, and they develop these wings as adults. This is one of the reasons that you’ll see them entering primarily through open windows. These titanic bugs are attracted to lights, so leaving them on at night with a window open is just like sending them a written invitation.
American cockroaches thankfully are outdoor dwelling roaches. They prefer to live in warm, damp areas like flowerbeds, under your house, and in mulch. However, they will enter homes to find food and water. Damaged weather stripping, window screens, or cracks in your walls are all easy ways for this bug to enter your home. They often go to bathrooms, kitchens, laundry rooms, and basements once they reach the inside.
Smokybrown Cockroaches
A common pest through the entire Southeast is the smokybrown cockroach. You can find them as far west as Texas and as far north as the Carolinas. They’ve even been recorded in Indiana, Illinois, and southern California.
A medium-sized cockroach, the adults of this species can reach about an inch and a half in length. The adults are uniformly black and have a shiny appearance to them. These roaches are often found in mulch and leaf litter, so spotting them outdoors is rare thanks to their well camouflaged shell.
Unlike other indoor infesting roaches, these guys are commonly found in areas as close to the outdoors as possible in your home. That means basements, sheds, decks, and ground-floor level rooms. Some of the things that attract them indoors are exposed trash, stacks of wood, and especially leaky pipes and standing water. This Lakeland cockroach species is prone to dehydration, so they will actively seek sources of water. And being strong fliers, this pest can easily fly in through any open windows or access damaged areas around an attic.
Lakeland Cockroaches : What to do with an infestation?
Well, one misconception many people have is that a cockroach infestation can be dealt with easily. And like I said above, cleaning and dealing with any sources of food and water are a great way to start. But improper use of poisons by a layman can lead to these fast-reproducing pests developing an immunity to certain chemicals within a few generations.
Instead, try to call a professional. Especially one that uses natural methods of pest control. It’s been long since proven that chemical pesticides are not just dangerous to bugs. They’re dangerous to you and your home as well. Simply put, this isn’t a job for someone with no experience. Leave it to the pros and contact one as soon as possible.
