Cockroaches have a fascinating evolutionary history. Some noteworthy publications from the 20^th century (e.g., Roth and Willis 1960) provide an overview of their evolutionary history along with their biotic associations. In the 21^st century, availability of the genomes of important pest cockroaches such as the German and American cockroach (Harrison et al. 2018 and Li et al. 2018) have provided more in depth understanding of their evolutionary linkages. Reading material links are provided below.

Roth and Willis 1960
Harrison et al. 2018
Li et al. 2018

From an economic perspective, pest cockroach species that live in close association with humans and human-made structures are heavily targeted for elimination due to the nuisance they cause and the allergens they produce. Detailed information on the biology, behavior and control of pest cockroaches can be found in the “Handbook of Pest Control” (10^th edition published in 2011). Specifically, Chapter 2 in this book, is dedicated to pestiferous cockroaches. For those interested in gaining more in-depth knowledge about pest cockroaches can purchase this book from various online sources. The link that provides overview of the contents of this book is provided below.

Handbook of Pest Control

Of the various pest cockroach species, the German cockroach, Blattella germanica is by far the most common household pest at the global level. The German cockroach is such a globally important structural and food pest that an entire book dedicated to biology and the management of this cockroach species was published in 2021. This book can be purchased from this publisher.  

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