The word cockroach is stemmed from the Spanish cucaracha. The cockroach is characterizable by a flat oval body, long stringlike antennae, and a gloss black or brown leathery integument. The head is bent downward, and the mouthparts are directed rearward instead of forward or downward as is the case in many other insects. The male often has two pairs of wings, unlike the female, who in some species, is wingless or appears with vestigial wings. The female creates eggs in egg cases (known as oothecae). These are on occasion held away from her body or could be stuck in protected parts. After the female generates an egg case, the soft, white nymphs emerge. As their exoskeleton toughens, it turns brown in hue. The form and big size (certain species possess a wing span measurement of upwards of 12 cm [4.7 inches]) of cockroaches have become a keen interest in the biological laboratory.

The cockroach likes a warm, humid, dark living environment and is often found thriving in tropical or other mild areas. Only a small number species have become pests. The insect inflicts damage upon more material than it consumes and emits a unpleasant odour. The nutrition of the roach, which should be both plant and animal product, goes from food, paper, clothing, and books to dead insects, including bedbugs. Insecticides are utilized in roach destroying.

The American cockroach (species Periplaneta americana) is 30 to 50 mm long (up to about 2 inches), reddish brown, and inhabits out of doors or in dark, heated indoor spaces (e.g., basements and furnace rooms). During its adult life, lasting about 1.5 years, the female drops 50 or more oothecae, each holding usually 16 eggs that hatch after 45 days. Nymphal life lasts from 11 to 14 months. The American cockroach, indigenous to tropical and subtropical America, has well-developed wings. However, many species are seldom great flyers.

The German cockroach (Blattella germanica), a common household pest and occasionally incorrectly referred to as a waterbug, is light brown with two dark stripes on the prothoracic area. The female produces the ootheca three days post mating and carries it for generally about 20 days. Because it is small in size (about 12 mm [less than 0.5 inch] long), this cockroach generally can be introduced into households in grocery bags and boxes; it has been spread between nations by boat. Three or more generations might breed yearly. This cockroach, found in abundance through the water pipes of the Croton Aqueduct in New York City, has become known as the Croton bug.

The brown-banded cockroach (Supella supellectilium) resembles the German cockroach but is a little bit smaller. The male has wholly developed wings and is paler in shade than the female, whose wings are stunted and nonfunctional. Both sexes have two light-coloured bands across the back. The adult life span is about 200 days, and there can be two generations a year. Eggs can be dropped in clothes, wood molding, or cracks in the floor. With the advent of heated buildings this cockroach became common in cooler areas.

The Oriental cockroach (Blatta orientalis) is held as one of the filthiest of household pests. It is oval, shiny black or dark brown, 25 to 30 mm (1 to 1.2 inches) long, with a life cycle similar to that of the American cockroach. The male has short, fully developed wings, but the female possesses vestigial wings. This cockroach has been taken by vehicles of business from its Asiatic origins to all the temperate regions.

Wood roaches are wild pests. Parcoblatta pennsylvanica, the common wood cockroach, habits in logs and stones in northern latitudes. The male and female are so different in appearance that they were first seen as separate species. The male, 15 to 25 mm (0.6 to 1 inch) long, possesses wings that extend beyond the abdomen; the female is smaller and has much shorter wings. Cryptocercus punctulatus digests wood with the help of some protozoans in its digestive tract.

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