deBugged

In terms of stardom and omnipresence, cockroaches would definitely be the ultimate pest. Which movie star can say that he/she has been around since the beginnings of history and always played one or other important role? OK, most of the time our cockroach only got the roles of the “evil and/or mischievous mastermind”, but in very rare occasions it had some nice and likeable roles, read on…

Quotes

I was wondering, what do human stars have to say about the cockroach. What references have been made to this old-timer and what is its business successes? Madonna was obviously impressed with the Cockroach’s ability to survive almost everything, when she stated the following: “I am a survivor. I am like a cockroach, you just can’t get rid of me.” There are more quotes like this and it seems that cockroaches are admired for the one ability that makes them so unloved by everybody who has them in their home. Let’s call it the Cockroach Paradox.

Songs

So much about quotes, there are some songs as well that revolve around cockroaches. I guess the first song which springs to mind is “la Cucaracha”. There are indefinite versions of this song, among the most commonly quoted lyrics would be:

La cucaracha, la cucaracha, ya no puede caminar porque no tiene, porque le falta las dos patitas de atrás.

The cockroach, the cockroach, can’t walk anymore because it doesn’t have, because it’s lacking its two back feet.

Another, more recent song that revolves around cockroaches is Necro’s “Cockroaches”. Not exactly my type of music, but interesting lyrics nonetheless. An excerpt would be:

Cockroaches

Billions greeting, roaming around since Genesis
coming out through the crevices
infested, walls filled with termites
Bugs in the drawer, looking for food
coming out when there’s no light!
They’re small, but they make humans nervous (…)

And so it goes. What I like about this song is that there is even a reference to pest controllers and the never-ending war between pest controller and cockroach (the description makes it sound a bit like commerical cockroach control actually)

(…) but some ain’t smart enough to evade the exterminator’s poison
So the pest takes it back to his nest
contacting with another insect it begins to infect the rest
A lot die, but it’s only a small fraction – we can’t catch ‘em
’cause there’s always new eggs hatchin’

Movies

OK, enough about music, even though there are plenty more songs referring to the heroic cockroach. What about movies? (More movies to spoil for Rentokil perhaos?)

The first that comes to my mind is “Joe’s Apartment – Sex Bugs Rock ‘n’Roll”, where a guy, Joe, moves in an apartment, lives in filthy a way, defying all good sanitation rules and, as a result befriends the singing and dancing cockroaches who share his accommodation. After the initial scary moments, these cockroaches help Joe to make his neighborhood a better place to live in. This is one of my favourite movies because it is refreshingly different to all those horror movies starring insects that are blown out of proportion, and which then kill random people.

Then there is the anime movie “Twilight of the Cockroaches”, where a group of cockroaches and a bachelor (What a surprise, who else, hahaha!) coexist peacefully, until a woman moves in and the extermination of the cockroaches begins. It is described from the cockroaches’ perspective, hence it is rather sad (but then again from the human perspective it makes total sense).

And then, remembering the rumors of cockroaches surviving nuclear wars, well, there was the famous movie “Wall-E”, where the best friend of the last robot on earth is a small cockroach.  Cute? Not so sure, haha.

I would also mention some books, including Kafka’s Metamorphosis – but it has been mentioned already here in 5 book Rentokil would have ruined.

It was quite amazing to find so many references to cockroaches. It shows that cockroaches are way too common and thus become a topic of conversation. They do cause a lot of trouble in real life though, they are a cause of asthma and diseases; please do not feel encouraged to make your home a home for cockroaches as well. Let’s face it, most probably they will not start singing and dancing for and with you (the closest a cockroach ever got is hissing, i.e. Madagascan Hissing Cockroach) or help you to make the world a better place.

There are an estimated 600 million cars in the planet and I believe there are just as many number of cockroaches (if not more). So it is sadly inevitable that destiny will pair up cockroaches and cars with us human beings acting as the unwitting middle man.

I played that role to perfection several years ago when I was handed the keys to my first automobile by a 2^nd hand dealer. The car was in an excellent condition. However, one thing always struck me as strange. The floor mats seemed to be missing from time to time. Sometimes it was there in the back; other times, it just disappeared.

This mystery was finally solved when I drove my mum home from grocery shopping one evening. Upon placing the bags on the mats, the mats literally dissolved. Further inspection resulted in screams of panic and mild hysteria when it was became evident that the “mats” was none other a mass congregation of living cockroaches.

With their small size and natural tendency to hide, cockroaches easily infiltrate our pockets and luggage before hopping onto our vehicle. Due to its size, two types of cockroaches are known to infest in cars; the brown banded cockroach and the German cockroach.

Tough as they may be, cockroaches would not survive long in the car without our assistance. We coax, encourage and even provide sustenance for cockroach infestations through the little crumbs of food that falls when we eat in the car or the empty soda can left overnight. This applies to property cockroach infestations too and advice for cockroach control is pretty similar.

A few tips for car owners with vehicles infested with cockroaches:

1. Clean up your act: vacuum your car regularly, remove all food sources from your car
2. Carefully empty every compartment in the car including the boot; then remove all unwanted paper, cardboard, and empty food or drink packaging
3. Thoroughly clean all the mattress , vacuum up any cockroaches you spot

Thinking about spraying? Don’t! Spraying with aerosol cans is merely a temporary measure and is rarely fully effective. Some cockroaches might be killed but more often than not the aerosol will only irritate and disperse the cockroaches; thereby spreading the infestation. If the infestation in your car is really serious, drive to your nearest pest control operator. Tell them about your problem and let them take it from there. They will know what to do. I wish I had known then what I know now about cockroaches!

No matter where you live, whether it’s the UK, USA or almost anywhere else – you will find the cockroach. Stories abound that in a nuclear attack cockroaches will survive, but just for the record – let’s not try that please.

The most prolific cockroach is the German cockroach, once they are in your home or business it requires a real concerted effort to get rid of them. Why you ask? They are prolific breeders and a single pair can produce 500 babies; they have been around for 250 million years and they love us (they invade our homes; every crack and crevice). It seems to me that they are not going anywhere!

So what can we do to keep the little critters out of our homes or businesses? Here are a few tips:

1. Don’t leave pet food out overnight.
2. Keep your property clean, wash dishes immediately and put them away.
3. When you bring back food in boxes, if you are going to store the product (use sealed plastic containers) I also like to freeze items I put in my pantry and then put in plastic containers. Throw the original boxes away carefully, German roaches love to have their bodies touching both top and bottom.
4. If you recycle – clean the cans and bottles.
5. Seal up any holes coming into your property.
6. If you notice any signs of cockroaches – call for advice immediately.

As always, if you ever have any issues or just want to talk with someone about a pest problem contact a professional pest control company.

This article was written by Keith Birkemeyer,  a pest control professional from Arizona USA. Keith has over 18 years of pest control experience having worked for a major pest company in Florida and was a Technical Representative for a chemical manufacturer. Bloggings can be found at Probestblog and is a whirl wind of industry news, tips, pictures and helpful articles.

I got sent this Corporate Lessons fable via email the other day from a friend (via: source) and thought it was:

1. Pretty funny,
2. Really quite true in the business world and
3. Brilliant considering it includes the following pests that have been mentioned in various other blog posts here on deBugged:

• Ants
• Cockroaches
• Spiders
• Flies
• Cicadas
• Haven’t blogged about lions yet or owls since they don’t get included in our pest guides

Anyway, that’s enough spoilers for you. Enjoy the following slide show… do you recognise any of your office colleagues here…

Every Day, A Small Ant Arrives at Work Very Early

Everyone knows the meaning of the word pest and can probably name a few examples. I am also sure that I don’t need to elaborate on the consequences of having them around.

Ever seen anyone running, screaming, jumping, etc. at the sight of them? Like the rodent that seems to be running towards you? Or a cockroach stalking you? Feeling itchy at the sight of ants or other hairy legged creatures? Well it’s not unusual as these are common reactions, even by some macho men.

Most of us are afraid of them, but have you ever wondered what would they taste like? Have you got the guts to try? Interested in trying deep fried or grilled rats as food? Hot & Spicy ants? BBQ lizards? Cockroach stew? Or how about getting drunk on snake wine? Tasty snacks made from fried or grilled ants, grasshoppers, crickets, lizards and many others which I rather not name.

It caught me by surprise (I mean real surprise) that there are people who make pests into delicacies and they can be found all over the menu. You will find this in Thailand, Taiwan, China, Vietnam and many other countries besides. Wow… these creatures that we called pests are becoming our food too, and sometimes its unintentional….

Then some beetles, seahorses, or even cockroaches have been used for medicinal purposes. Boil in water or some herbal soup, but I doubt anyone would want to eat that. There are even people who are willing to pay a high price to get their hands on a termite queen since they believe she is rich in protein and other nutrients. They don’t need to cook it, just swallow it live!

I bet most of you have seen or heard about “I’m a Celebrity (Pest) Get Me Out of Here” type TV shows about survival in the jungle where people are taught to eat whatever they can find like worms, beetles, etc. So feel free to try some of these delicious (?!) pest delicacies.

But just as a final word of warning, while doing some on-line research, I found these words from Channel4: Revenge of the Tribe. It says “CAUTION: If it’s brightly-coloured, excessively hairy, or feeding on a dead animal – best leave it alone. If you’re not sure, DON’T eat it. Bugs can be poisonous too.”

Sounds like good advice to me.