Learn all about cockroaches droppings, smell, toxicity their appearance and identification. Cockroaches are most active at night, making the cockroach a nocturnal insect. Cockroaches prefer hiding and living in dark, moist areas throughout your house.
Areas such as behind your fridge, sink, and other major appliances tend to appeal to cockroaches, and with their ability to flatten their bodies to fit in small areas, cockroaches can also be found within cracks in your walls. Cockroaches can contaminate food with their waste and saliva which contains bacteria that can cause food poisoning, diarrhea, and Stephylococcus infections.
Although they are associated with, and thrive in conditions of poor sanitation due to the large amount of food available, they can also invade even the best-kept homes. Contrary to popular belief, you do not get cockroaches because of poor housekeeping. Cockroaches can come into your home on food, packages, boxes, used furniture and appliances, or can migrate from adjoining apartments or buildings.
A study conducted at McMaster University, near Hamilton, Ontario, found that certain insects, including cockroaches, emit a specific death stench. This stench is caused by oleic acid, which is produced by the decomposing body. This “death recognition system,” likely an evolutionary adaptation developed 400 million years ago, enables cockroaches to avoid places and spaces where there is a threat to life, such as predators or a virus.
The obvious way to handle the situation is to get rid of the cockroaches. Without the cockroaches, there is no cockroach poop to deal with. Make sure you do a thorough job cleaning and sanitizing because if you don’t, there could be cockroach poop left in your home that could continue to cause sickness for a number of years.
What are Cockroach droppings?
Cockroaches literally defecate everywhere they go. They don’t have a specific bathroom area like humans do, though there are places where defecation is more likely to happen. They frequently defecate near their food sources and nesting or congregation areas. Unfortunately, since their food sources are often near (or in) yours, your food can become contaminated and disease can spread. Cockroach poop looks like little pellets. Some would describe it as cylindrical even. The color can vary from brown to black. Depending on the size of the cockroaches in your home, the size of the cockroach poop will also vary greatly. Sometimes when it is first spotted it is mistaken for mouse poop. You will be able to tell the difference upon a closer look.
Cockroach droppings Pictures
Cockroach droppings Smell
The feces add potency to the telltale musty odor of a cockroach infestation. They get a sort of musty, slightly funky smell. Not terribly strong, but noticeable if allowed accumulating. It’s the cockroach excrement that you smell, along with any dead roaches. You would get rid of the smell by cleaning up the poo (and dead roaches and roach parts).
Cockroach droppings Toxicity
Cockroach faeces pose health threats to humans. When cockroaches infest an indoor area or home, the fecal matter excreted by the pest insects can compromise the quality of the air when it becomes air-borne. Cockroach faeces contain certain proteins that act as allergens with the potential for becoming airborne. The allergens contained in cockroach faeces have particularly adverse effects on people with asthma. When airborne and inhaled, the allergens can trigger asthmatic symptoms like coughing and wheezing. More troublingly, research indicates that healthy children exposed to cockroach faeces allergens at a young age may actually begin to develop asthma, a chronic respiratory disease for which there is no cure.
Cockroach droppings Look like
The feces of small cockroaches are black and resemble ground coffee or black pepper. Larger cockroaches leave black or brown droppings which are cylindrical in shape and have ridges down the side. Their feces often referred to as specks can be the size of a tiny grain of rice or coffee ground.
Cockroach droppings Identification
Cockroaches leave feces or droppings that are easily identifiable. Roaches eat everything from plant matter to people food, dead skin cells, garbage and even feces, but their high metabolism turns this appetite into one of the most telltale signs of roaches: a considerable amount of roach droppings. Depending on what type of roach you are dealing with (e.g., German roach, brown-banded roach, etc.), as well as the size and level of infestation, the appearance of roach feces can vary to resemble anything from tiny specks of pepper to brown stains to coffee grounds to oval pellets. A large amount of feces in a fairly visible location can be a good indicator of a large roach infestation. Check behind the stove and refrigerator, as well as all sinks, pantries, cupboards and other food storage areas in your home. If you spot a substantial amount of feces, you know the area is a high-traffic zone for roaches, so cut off nearby possible food and water sources.
