The name Pennsylvania wood cockroach makes one think these creatures should be in Pennsylvania, not Northwest Arkansas, but their range extends throughout our state. These misunderstood underdogs of the cockroach world make up 50 percent of the diet of endangered red-cockaded woodpeckers. Take the time to get to know them, and you’ll discover how remarkably dissimilar they are to other, more problematic, cockroaches.
First, take heart knowing that if you see them indoors, they’re just lost. They only get inside houses from a lack of direction, not a desire to take over the kitchen. Like tourists, they simply lose their way and find themselves taking a wrong turn underneath a door or through a window. Males are like moths and driven to fly dazedly at our house lights at night, especially in late spring and early summer; turn the lights down or off to avoid being a beacon in the darkness. They commonly fly through doorways as we enter and leave our homes at night. Females, however, can’t fly despite having small, dysfunctional wings. Neither do they want to lay eggs indoors. They prefer reproducing outside in the woods and only accidentally get inside houses near woodland habitat.
If you think you have one in your house, the easiest way to identify them is to use an insect field guide or internet chart comparing species, since they resemble other cockroaches. Males are larger than females. Males and females could be mistaken for two different species or females seen as juvenile cockroaches.
The wood cockroach is attracted to moisture, such as dripping pipes. They might enter a house through a crack or along a wet pipe. They’re active both at night and during the day, although of course you’re less likely to see them during the day because our house beacons are turned off. If you do see them on a wall or floor, they may not sprint away and hide. The image of cockroaches scuttling into the shadows is not characteristic of the Pennsylvania wood roach. But they will run if threatened. Their docile nature is why some people keep them as pets.
Another reason is that, unlike other cockroach species, these wood-lovers don’t carry diseases. I wouldn’t kiss one, but for the most part, they are clean (for a cockroach, anyway). They also can’t bite or sting. They hide beneath bark and become snacks for woodpeckers.
The red-cockaded woodpecker is about the size of a cardinal and its red cockade near its cheek is so hard to see you’re better off looking for a black-and-white woodpecker. Since they’re endangered in Arkansas (listed in 1970), you’re not likely to see them anyway. They’re listed as Near Threatened by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. The woodpeckers are mostly present in southern Arkansas counties, but you never know, you just might see one reclaim its traditional pine habitat someday! Having the Pennsylvania wood cockroach around may be the meal ticket these woodpeckers need.
Amanda Bancroft is a writer, artist, and naturalist living in an off-grid tiny house on Kessler Mountain. She and her husband Ryan blog about their adventures and offer tips to those wanting to make a difference at www.RipplesBlog.org.
