Some home owners are allergic to roaches, and the pests can contaminate food with certain bacterial diseases that result in food poisoning, dysentery, or diarrhea. Cockroaches can cause childhood asthma. Identification Most cockroaches have a flattened oval shape, spiny legs, and grow long, filamentous antennae. Immature stages are smaller, have undeveloped wings and resemble adults. Males and females are about the same size.
Nymphs are wingless, uniformly brown colored, and run very fast.
Egg capsules protrude from the body for a few hours to four days. One egg capsule is formed each week until 6 to 14 have been produced. Each case contains up to 16 white or yellowish-white eggs. Adults live almost 15 months. These roaches are found in dark, moist areas, especially in sewers, steam heat tunnels, boiler rooms, around bathtubs and clothes hampers, and around plumbing, feeding on decaying organic matter.