Do baby roaches mean infestation? The presence of baby roaches does indeed indicate an infestation, one that could grow exponentially if not eliminated swiftly. For every baby roach seen, there are likely dozens, perhaps hundreds, of others hiding, not to mention a multitude of adults.
For the nymphs, use insect growth regulators, known as IGRs. They inhibit insect growth, so if a baby cockroach eats some IGR, it won't grow up. For adults, use an insecticide formulated for cockroaches, or a natural product like boric acid or diatomaceous earth.
Not all white cockroaches are babies, so if you see one, make sure to take care of them quickly since it can mean that they're going from their juvenile to their adult phase, meaning that they can fully reproduce.
Baby cockroaches are about as bad a sign as you can find. See, finding a big brown adult cockroach could mean you've just caught one lonely wanderer. Finding baby roaches signals that, at the very least, there are a few adults nearby and they're ready to reproduce again.
If it is between 10 to 25 roaches, it can be a moderate one. But if it exceeds 25, it can now be classified as a heavy infestation. You should know that the few roaches you see at home are not the only ones you have to deal with. There may be 40 to 50 roaches hiding within your place that you don't know.
While the presence of one cockroach in your home can be enough to send you into a panic, one roach doesn't necessarily mean you have a full blown infestation. Roaches are social pests, however, and reproduce quickly.
Life Cycle: Baby Cockroaches to Adults
Adult female cockroaches lay their eggs in an egg sac in a dark, hidden area near food and moisture. The egg sacs are tiny and roaches can hide them in small cracks in the floor or a tiny corner of a cabinet.
Baby cockroaches look like smaller versions of adult cockroaches. However, they are white after they first hatch. Within several hours, they will darken. Cockroach nymphs don't have fully developed wings, and some don't have wings at all.
They'll shed their skin, or molt, about six times as nymphs. After the final molt, they emerge with ready-to-use wings. It takes about 103 days for a nymph to grow into an adult. Once they grow up, they are able to reproduce.
Life cycle of cockroaches
Adults lay eggs contained within dark-colored egg cases (size and shape of a dry kidney bean). Depending on the species, an egg case contains between 16 - 50 eggs. Eggs hatch into young cockroaches called nymphs, that are more numerous than adults.
Once a baby cockroach emerges from the egg sac, it is white in colour. After a short time, its skin will darken to a deep brown. These nymphs look like adults but are much smaller and lack wings. As they grow, baby cockroaches undergo several molts before reaching full maturity.
American cockroaches – American cockroach nymphs are about one-quarter of an inch in length. They change color as they shed their exoskeletons and grow, a process referred to as molting. Nymphs begin as a black-brown color and evolve to the reddish-brown color of adults.
Moisture. Roaches need moisture to survive and this search for water will bring them into even the cleanest of homes. Leaky pipes and faucets are one of the most common attractants for cockroaches and is one of the main reasons you often see them in bathrooms, kitchens, and laundry rooms.
The first step to having cockroaches in your apartment dealt with is to notify your landlord immediately. Even if it is normal for you to call and speak with your landlord, make sure to get something in writing.
The most common places for a roach nest in the house are in kitchens or bathrooms, particularly behind refrigerators, in cracks and crevices, and under furniture. Roaches prefer a warm, humid environment, so these places should be considered first, especially if they are close to a food source and water supply.
Cockroaches are very resourceful insects that can enter your home in a number of different ways, including: Crawling inside through small holes and cracks in the building. Hitching a ride on bags, backpacks, suitcases and other containers. Finding openings around doors and windows.
To find out where the cockroaches are nesting, you can use lights to get a general idea. Flipping the lights on and off in a dark room and observing where the creatures run will let you know where the nest location is. You can use a flashlight or your phone flashlight to look under furniture and other areas of clutter.
Booklice or Psocids are tiny, white, gray, or brown. You'll find booklice bugs that you'd find in damp, undisturbed places of your home. These are the places where you can find baby roaches too. Brown booklice look very similar to baby German roaches, whereas white ones resemble an albino baby cockroach.
When you consider that most roaches develop into adults in under 35 days, you realize it doesn't take long for a home to be infested. The only real limiting factor is the availability and quantity of food sources. This is all to say, it doesn't take long for a few roaches to turn into a full infestation.
Roaches won't leave a vacant home unless the food supply completely runs out. As roaches will feed on nymphs or dead and dying roaches, they're unlikely to starve. What's more likely than a roach colony leaving a home is that they will widen their food search, using your vacated home as a base for warmth and shelter.
These pests are so resilient, it's been said that they'll be the sole survivors of a nuclear war. Needless to say, they're not easy to get rid of, even if you correct the conditions that attracted them in the first place. Here's why it's nearly impossible for a cockroach infestation to go away on its own.
A particularly stubborn or severe infestation could require this level of treatment. It is possible to completely get rid of roaches in your home with the right type of treatment but they will not stay away forever. Once you eradicate the current infestation you need to stay proactive about keeping them away.