White cockroaches that appear in an apartment usually cause surprise, so questions arise about their danger or harm to people.
Why are they white
There are several answers to the question why cockroaches are white. An unusual color is not a sign of a separate species of insects, they can change color for several reasons.
Moult
A change in the color of the chitinous shell occurs periodically during molting, i.e. when replacing it with a new one. So, at birth from larvae, “babies” are initially white in color, and then in a few days, when the desired pigment is developed in the chitinous cover, they change it 5-6 times to the usual color. Therefore, small transparent or white cockroaches encountered in the house are the next generation, which is currently changing its shell, and then it will become a full-fledged red prusak, ready for.
On a note!
Usually, when dropping an old tight shell, a young white cockroach becomes very vulnerable and defenseless, and therefore in inaccessible or secluded places in the house: under baseboards, in cracks. That is why a white cockroach in an apartment is very rare. Indeed, after 5-6 hours, when the staining of the chitinous cover has occurred, the “reddened” pest is already running for a new portion of food, especially at night.
The influence of chemicals
Color loss may be due to the action of chemical insecticides. The composition of many poisons includes toxic chlorine, which can cause the destruction of the pigment in the insect shell. Therefore, the white color in an adult Prusak indicates that he was hit by a chemical preparation, the destruction of his cover began, and he should die soon. However, some "resistant" individuals survive even after the action of toxic substances, then poison gradually leaves the body along with feces, and the chitinous shell becomes its usual natural color.
On a note!
Most often, a white cockroach is found in the house when ordinary Prussians molt, and such an insect does not have wings that appear in adults only after the last replacement of the chitinous shell.
Exposure to radiation
According to scientists, large populations of white cockroaches can be seen in places with high background radiation. As a result of such radiation, the cells and the body of the insect mutate, which not only loses color, but also becomes more resistant to harmful environmental factors (see albino cockroach in the photo below). Such insects can be considered "litmus paper", signaling the danger of living in a certain area of the area.
Interesting!
In nature, there are some varieties of albino cockroaches that live in caves, which do not need staining, so they retain their white shell color all their lives.
Danger from the appearance of white insects
It is during the period of change of the chitinous shell that the body of white cockroaches requires an abundant supply of food and substances necessary to complete the process of molting and staining of the shell. Therefore, at night you can meet in places where food is stored. During such a period, they become more vulnerable to the action of chemicals, which can be used by every homeowner to control pests.
Fight against albinos
The destruction of white cockroaches can be done by the same methods as for conventional pests. If, after applying insecticides, transparent or white individuals still appear, this means that they have developed immunity to the chemical used, so it must be replaced with more.
Will help:
- , among which the most effective are recognized;
- , temperatures leading to the death of cockroaches have proven themselves well. But equipment that cannot stand frost (TVs, laptops, computers), it is better to disassemble and clean it yourself.
Prevention of the appearance of white cockroaches in the apartment
To avoid any color, some general sanitary rules should be observed:
- conduct regular thorough cleaning of the premises;
- remove food residues from the table and other surfaces, hide them in sealed packaging;
- carry out timely repairs of sewer and water pipes in order to prevent leakage or increase in humidity in the room;
- close up all the cracks so that "guests from neighbors" do not come.
Having found out the reasons and consequences of why cockroaches are white, we can conclude that it is not worth worrying about the health and life of the residents of the apartment where they appear, and the fight against them should be carried out similarly to the usual types of such insects.
There are 7570 species of cockroaches in the world. Only a few of them settle inside the dwellings of people and live at the expense of a person, which causes a lot of inconvenience.
If red Prussians or brown insects disgust many people, the desire to get rid of them as soon as possible, then white cockroaches often shock people, causing fear and panic.
Are there white cockroaches
Albinism is a phenomenon that people, animals, and plants face. The absence of melanin pigment in mammals or chlorophyll in plants affects the disappearance of the inherent color of the skin, coat, and eye color. In this case, the skin and hair of albinos turn white.
There are also white cockroaches in nature. These pests have a similar body shape, number of paws, whiskers, and the ability to move around with red relatives. Their only difference is color.
A similar body color of an insect is not associated with melanin. Although the cockroach is called white, it is not an albino.
Video
white cockroach
Why are they this color?
The white cockroach is not an exotic creature and not an albino, but an ordinary red pest. The reason why the cockroach turned white is banal - molting. Throughout life, the insect sheds its shell 5 to 8 times. This is due to the fact that the hard chitinous cover does not grow in parallel with the body of the Prusak.
That is why it is vital for insects of this species to shed.
A cockroach that has just hatched from its shell becomes vulnerable, hides as far as possible, climbing into nooks and crannies. Despite the fact that all types of cockroaches living near people molt and change color at certain periods of their lives, it is rare to see a white cockroach in a home.
Do not be surprised to find several non-standard pest colors indoors at once. This is due to the nature of insect reproduction.
The female lays 30–40 eggs at a time, which subsequently, turning from larvae into adults, develop in the same way, respectively, and molt at the same time.
Also, white small individuals can be observed during the period of their hatching from eggs. Subsequently, the nymphs become adults and take on the standard form of a red cockroach.
Chlorine brightens the chitinous surface of the pest's body to a white color.
Where do they appear in the apartment
During molting, cockroaches are vulnerable: their body is not covered with a protective shell, and a different color from the usual one does not contribute to the necessary camouflage. Therefore, insects wait out this process, as a rule, in secluded places.
Most likely, it will not work to see a pest on a wall, floor or table during the molting period. The exception is an insect that is disoriented for some reason. The usual behavior for the pest during the dropping of the shell is to choose a convenient shelter and wait there for the usual state of the body cover for the cockroach.
Having found such a “guest”, you should not be afraid and attribute dangerous characteristics to him. This is the same red, only more vulnerable and less agile, white Prussian.
It is much easier to cope with the elimination of such an insect, because the mobility and activity of white individuals during molting is seriously reduced.
The period of stay of a cockroach in white is small, it takes from 2 to 3 days. Therefore, a meeting of a person with a white individual, if it is not poisoned with chlorine, is very rare.
Where are they most often found
When getting rid of insects by using insecticides, it should be remembered that the Prussians prefer to hide in remote places that are invisible to humans. White cockroaches are especially careful hiding.
Most often, during molting, individuals hide in the crevices of walls, furniture, piles of rubbish that have not been moved for a long time, behind baseboards. At this time, white pests do not always leave the shelter even to search for food.
What is the danger to humans
A cockroach, regardless of color, always causes a lot of negative sensations.
- Pests of this species are able to move within an apartment building, wandering from basements, ventilation shafts or attics to people's apartments. At the same time, the Prussians carry many dangerous organisms on their paws and antennae. Cockroaches are carriers of various diseases, including dysentery and tuberculosis. Also, the Prussians carry the eggs of worms, leaving them on the table, dishes.
- Cockroaches damage not only food. They are able to ruin important papers, leaving feces on them or dropping the chitinous shell. Traces of insects on light-colored furniture, walls, and ceilings are also unpleasant.
- The presence of Prussians in the house negatively affects the human nervous system. While moving along the joints of peeled wallpaper or paper, insects create noise that can bring some people to a nervous breakdown.
- Often, hiding in the housing of household appliances, albino cockroaches damage it, leaving behind feces on vulnerable parts and mechanisms.
Can a white individual bite a person
Prussians often bite people, causing unpleasant wounds on the surface of the skin, redness. However, white representatives of this species of insects are unlikely to harm humans due to their particular vulnerability during molting.
No matter how dangerous the bites of the Prussians are, you should not be afraid of being bitten by a white cockroach, the likelihood of such an incident is negligible.
Are they strong allergens?
Leaving behind excrement and a chitinous cover, the white cockroach emits a special smell. This aroma, which is not noticeable to a person, can cause a severe allergy attack in people prone to similar body reactions.
The new shell will darken in a few hours, sometimes a few days. This time it remains soft, flexible, does not protect its owner. The cockroach has to hide in dark secluded places during molting, wait for the cover to harden. This explains the fact that white individuals are rarely seen.
Margarita, Gorno-Altaisk:
- televisions;
- laptops;
- system blocks;
- toasters.
small and large white cockroaches
Cockroach larvae that have just hatched from eggs may appear white. Their cover is very thin, the chitinous shell contains little dark pigment. After a few hours, the pigment will cover the entire shell, the cockroach will acquire its traditional color.
Another difference is the increased sensitivity to toxic substances of contact action. Poisons will be easier to penetrate through the soft shell, now you need very little poison to get a lethal dose. The ability to adapt during this period in insects is somewhat reduced. All forces go to the restoration of the protective shell.
White cockroaches become inhibited, disoriented during the molting period. They are easy to destroy, they do not tend to run away, falling into sunlight, open space. But this state does not last long, only a few hours, sometimes several days.
Human danger
White cockroaches during the molting period pose the same danger to humans as at other times. They carry dangerous diseases, worm eggs, and spread infections.
The discarded hard shell is destroyed over time, mixed with dust. A person will constantly inhale small particles of the chitinous cover of domestic pests. This can cause allergies, which will manifest itself:
- persistent dry cough;
- runny nose;
- rash or itching of the skin;
- swelling on the face.
In a severe case, with the simultaneous inhalation of a large amount of such microparticles, an asthma attack may develop.
It is especially dangerous for small children to be in such rooms. Their immunity is unable to protect against allergens, the baby's body will suffer. When cockroaches appear, be sure to carry out wet cleaning, paying special attention to places near baseboards, behind cabinets, and upholstered furniture.
Only a doctor can pull a cockroach out of your ear. The cockroach will not come out on its own, due to its structure, it is not able to move back, it will not be able to turn around. You can not try to pull it out yourself, it can only cause additional pain.
The closer the insect gets to the eardrum, the more painful it will be for the person, you should immediately go to the hospital. It is not difficult to understand that a cockroach has crawled into your ear - you will hear its movement with loud sounds. When hit by another insect, it is usually selected.
Ways to get rid
Boric acid
Sprays
Help insecticidal gels,. It is enough to spread such a tool in places where cockroaches accumulate, as the process of their destruction begins. Insects eat a product that smells attractive to them. They do not die immediately, they manage to run to the nest. Thus contributing to the spread of the poisonous composition.
The white cockroach is able to bring joy, happiness to the house, peace, tranquility. If you do not kill him, then it will reward the owners. It can be not only material, but also spiritual gratitude. For example, quarrels in the family will subside, the right solution will be found. Financially, a snow-white individual helps with unexpected gifts.
Among the several thousand species of cockroaches that exist on our planet, only about fifty live near a person, his home. Of these, three varieties settle next to people, live at their expense, causing a lot of trouble. These are the most common Prussians (red), black and American cockroaches. Although mysterious white cockroaches are sometimes found in a person’s house.
White cockroach looks unusual
Cockroach "Santa Barbara"
This list can be replenished with Japanese, Turkmen, furniture and other insects. All of them live at the expense of human waste products. Although they live in different climatic zones, they have features of the external structure, differ in size, living conditions and color. But there are common features that unite the "cockroach family":
- identical structure of the oral apparatus;
- conducting night "hunting" in search of food;
- thermophilicity;
- the ability to fall into suspended animation in order to wait out unfavorable days without food;
- vitality, endurance;
- the ability to spread various bacteria, eggs of worms;
- the specificity of reproduction, which consists in a single fertilization of the female by the male, after which he does not take part in laying eggs;
- the ability of chitinous shells of insects shed during molting to cause allegorical reactions in humans, especially when they are large in number;
- omnivorous, the ability to recycle waste.
All cockroaches, regardless of color, are united by unprecedented vitality and fertility.
"Mysterious" cockroach: why is it white?
Among the human "acquaintances" occupying the dwelling, polluting it, not knowing barriers to any constipation, it is customary to see a red cockroach. This is a heat-loving, fast-running species in a state of danger, preferring to settle in a house or apartment in places with high humidity. Goes out to fish, usually in the dark. It can be seen and not in the singular, if you suddenly turn on the light in the kitchen, in the bathroom. But you can catch another picture: a whitish insect crawling out of nowhere in search of organic food. The body can be generally translucent. The so-called white cockroach is not a separate species of insect at all. All the same head with antennae, slightly elongated body. It's just that any insect of the cockroach genus at a certain period of its life cycle changes its chitinous habitual shell and becomes a "blonde". This may happen in some cases.
Reason #1
The transformation of larvae (nymphs) hatched from eggs into a sexually maturing individual. The process is lengthy, involves a number of changes in the outer protective cover (molt). This happens due to the fact that the actively feeding larva grows and does not fit into the old shell, it is forced to shed it about eight or ten times in a lifetime. The body unprotected by the shell is transparent or is just beginning to be covered with a colorless (white) shell. White cockroaches caught in this form in the apartment create an imaginary impression of the presence of a special species in nature. In fact, for the first time after shedding the shell, the integuments are soft, not pigmented. But it will take only a couple of hours, and they will begin to harden, at the same time turning into the color familiar to this species. There may be several such albinos from one hatched clutch of eggs in the general population. After all, they develop and feed in the same apartment conditions.
Reason #2
The impact of toxic substances used in disinsection on the chitinous protective shell. The composition of poisons includes complex compounds, incl. and toxic chlorine, which can cause the destruction of the coloring pigment. The insect, which is in the stage of death, is still eking out its existence, but its appearance (white chitinous cover) already indicates a serious damage to all organs. If the cockroach that “tasted” chlorine still manages to survive, then over time, along with the feces, the poison will leave its body, and the chitinous cover will gradually take on its natural color.
Interesting. Despite the common features inherent in all "domesticated" cockroaches, white "brothers" differ in demeanor. Having thrown off her mask, the nymph becomes the most vulnerable to external influences, therefore most of the time she hides in secluded corners: under the baseboards, hiding in the cracks, between the walls of the furniture, etc. And only at night they crawl out to refresh themselves.
What danger do white cockroaches pose to humans?
You should expect the same troubles from whitish tenants as from their darker counterparts.
- Moving from a garbage can (garbage heap, basement, ventilation shaft, old pantry, kitchen, toilet) of one entrance, they wander to apartments of other entrances of the house. Along the way, they carry intestinal bacteria on the antennae-antennae, and also leave them in their feces. Especially dangerous are large populations of such carriers within the boundaries of a single apartment, where you can get dysentery, diarrhea, tuberculosis, gastroenterocolitis, meningitis, etc. White cockroaches hatch pinworm eggs and whipworm in their intestines. Distribute dangerous bacteria in attention-grabbing places: on food, dining tables, sinks, dishes.
- Leaving behind feces, discarded chitinous shells, cockroaches emit a specific smell that causes asthma attacks and other manifestations of diseases in people prone to allergies.
- They spoil the external aesthetics of the rooms with traces of their stay (dark small spots) on light wallpaper, tiles, furniture, on the pages of books.
- Large populations of insects irritate the nervous system, create noise, moving under peeled wallpaper, etc.
- They cause malfunctions in the operation of household appliances, penetrating into it and depositing excrement on parts and mechanisms.
Attention! The appearance of white cockroaches should be expected only after ordinary Prussians settle in the apartment. Albinos will appear immediately after the larvae begin to molt. Therefore, the expression “white cockroach with wings” is incorrect, because. nymphs differ from sexually mature individuals precisely in the absence of wings, and the insect is white only in the larval stage.
How to remove white cockroaches?
The methods of dealing with the "white occupiers" are no different from actions against their relatives.
- The apartment must be kept clean, even the smallest remnants of food must be constantly removed, everything that may be of interest to cockroaches and nymphs in the apartment. Take out the garbage regularly, and cover the bucket in the kitchen with a lid.
- Create a waterless space: turn off taps, fix leaks, wipe sinks and sinks, remove water vases and other sources. Insects cannot stay without moisture for a long time.
- Inspect the apartment, eliminate the ways of penetration of insects into it. Fill the cracks, seal the seams with sealant. Hang grilles on the ventilation shafts.
- Carry out regular wet cleaning.
- If cockroaches are found, use insecticides "Mashenka", "Clean House", "Karbofos", "Foresight", etc.
- Set up electric traps that lure white cockroaches with bait and kill them with an electric shock.
- Distribute boric acid baits and eggs over the entire area of \u200b\u200bthe room in places where insects are most concentrated.
- Use a remedy made from flour and alabaster. Substances in a dry form mix 1: 1 and sprinkle on "evil" places.
- Hang bunches of elderberry, eucalyptus, wormwood over kitchen sinks and cabinets, near ventilation grills as repellents. Arrange sprigs with bay leaf.
Only timely prevention, cleanliness in the apartment will help get rid of not only white, but also all other types of cockroaches.
Since the beginning of our century, the number of cockroaches in apartments has noticeably decreased. The fault is not only the use of powerful insecticidal drugs by the population, but also the radiation from modern gadgets. These insects, whether they are red or black, are disgusting, spoil food, leave traces of vital activity on things and furniture, and are carriers of some dangerous infections. Increasingly, a white cockroach is found in the apartment. What is it - a mutation or a new species, where did it come from, how does it get into dwellings, what is dangerous and how to get rid of it?
A cockroach is an insect that has a narrow and oval-shaped body, the length of which is normally 1.5 cm. It moves perfectly along vertical surfaces, which is facilitated by 6 paws with hooks and suction cups. Wings in males almost cover the belly, in females they are shorter. Long antennae are located on the head.
There are several reasons for the appearance of insects of an unusual color. The first is related to the molting process. After fertilization, the female bears in a special capsule - ootheca - from 12 to 40 eggs. Until the moment of maturation, the ootheca is located at the bottom of her belly. Having dropped the capsule, the female waits for the appearance of larvae - nymphs.
They have a soft white shell that begins to darken and become denser after a couple of hours. The larva molts at least 6 times during the development period. Coming out of the old chitinous cover, the nymph becomes white and acquires its usual appearance only after 5 - 6 hours. That is, white insects often seen in the apartment are larvae that get out of secluded places at night in search of food. Sometimes white individuals fall into placed glue traps.
Very rarely, a mutation as a result of high levels of radiation becomes the cause of the appearance of light-colored cockroaches. Since in this case the radiation penetrates into the structure of the body of insects at the cellular level, changing not only the color of the body of cockroaches, but also the degree of their adaptability to environmental conditions. Therefore, in the absence of the above two reasons, the presence of a cluster of white cockroaches at home may indicate increased radiation.
Video "The reasons for the appearance of cockroaches in the house"
Informative video about the causes of the appearance of pests in the apartment and how to deal with them.
Danger
There are not so many ways for white cockroaches to enter an apartment. They, as we have already understood, appear from the larvae present in the dwelling at the time of active reproduction. Still, even if you regularly carry out wet cleaning, fold all things, do not have cluttered corners, take out the garbage on time, pack food hermetically or hide them in the refrigerator, you are not immune from the appearance of insects from neighbors, from things taken from relatives or friends.
To prevent cockroaches from re-populating your territory, hide food from the table, clean up, take out the garbage bag on time, repair faucets in a timely manner and eliminate leaks in pipes. Also close up any gaps in the floor and walls through which insects can enter from neighboring apartments.
Fighting methods
Homemade boric acid bait with the addition of a chicken egg is also effective. Balls made from it have been helping our mothers and grandmothers to destroy cockroaches for many decades. It is acceptable to use repellents of natural origin. Herbs are hung in bunches over kitchen sinks and cabinets, near air vents.
