Cockroaches

Cockroaches (or roaches) are insects belonging to the order Blattodea (Blattaria). About 30 cockroach species out of 4,600 are associated with human habitats. Some species are well-known pests. Modern cockroaches are an ancient group that first appeared during the Late Jurassic. Their ancestors, known as "roachoids", likely originated during the Carboniferous period around 320 million years ago. Those early ancestors, however, lacked the internal ovipositors of modern roaches. Cockroaches are somewhat generalized insects lacking special adaptations (such as the sucking mouthparts of aphids and other true bugs); they have chewing mouthparts and are probably among the most primitive of living Neopteran insects. They are common and hardy insects capable of tolerating a wide range of climates, from Arctic cold to tropical heat. Tropical cockroaches are often much larger than temperate species. Modern cockroaches are not considered to be a monophyletic group, as it has been found based on genetics that termites are deeply nested within the group, with some groups of cockroaches more closely related to termites than they are to other cockroaches, thus rendering Blattaria paraphyletic. Both cockroaches and termites are included in Blattodea. Some species, such as the gregarious German cockroach, have an elaborate social structure involving common shelter, social dependence, information transfer and kin recognition. Cockroaches have appeared in human culture since classical antiquity. They are popularly depicted as large, dirty pests, although the majority of species are small and inoffensive and live in a wide range of habitats around the world. The irrational fear of cockroaches is called katsaridaphobia.