Tawny cockroach

Ectobius pallidus

Ectobius pallidus (Olivier 1789) is a species of non-cosmopolitan cockroach in the family Ectobiidae. The species is native to western Europe and North Africa. In the UK, where it is known from southern England, it has colloquially been dubbed the "Tawny cockroach". In North America the vernacular names "Spotted Mediterranean Cockroach" or "Pallid Cockroach" have been pitched.
Ectobius pallidus - female, on wood This one was found by Ben Gaxiola on his front door in Vlaardingen (Netherlands), very late in the year and in the middle of town - both quite unusual for this species, so at first we expected it to be one of two new arrivals (expansive species from the south of Europe). I shot these images for ID and discussion, but the species is still missing on JD, so hey ... Here are other shots of the same individual: https://www.jungledragon.com/image/69166/ectobius_pallidus_-_female_on_leaf.html https://www.jungledragon.com/image/69167/dscf9905_ce8_cleaning_antenna.html Cockroach,Ectobiidae,Ectobius,Ectobius pallidus,Spotted Mediterranean Cockroach,Tawny cockroach

Appearance

Ectobius pallidus, with a length of 8-9.5mm, is a medium sized Ectobius. It is fairly pale brown overall with a whitish head, transparent pronotum with tan central disk. The head, pronotum and tegmina (forewings) are speckled with small reddish brown spots. Especially the females may carry a few larger redish brown spots in two rows over the length of the tegmina. In contrast to many other Ectobiidae where the females often have reduced wings, here both sexes are fully winged and capable of flight.
Ectobius pallidus - young nymph Under 3mm still Cockroach,Ectobiidae,Ectobius,Ectobius pallidus,Spotted Mediterranean Cockroach,Tawny cockroach

Naming

Currently a few subspecies are still recognized:
E. pallidus pallidus (Olivier, 1789) nominal ssp.
E. pallidus ssp. chopardi Adelung, 1917
E. pallidus ssp. minor Ramme, 1923
E. pallidus punctulatus (Fieber, 1853)

The species was first described as Blatta pallida by Olivier in 1789, but has been identified for a long time as Ectobius livens and/or livida. Synonyms include:
Ectobius brevipennis Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1865
Ectobius livens (Turton, 1806)
Ectobius livida (Fabricius, 1793)
Ectobius succinea (Risso, 1826)
Ectobius pallidus - antenna, Heesch, Netherlands Ths image is the result of a failed stack, so I figured to reuse it for another purpose: a very basic anatomy overview of the antenna. From right to left: - Attached to the head, the tube-like part is called the scape or base. - Next is a roundish socket-like part called the pedical or stem. - Followed by a variable amount of hairy segments collectively called the flagellum, which collects the sensory input The scape and pedical are internally connected and together controlled by a muscle, allowing the insect to control the antennae as a whole. The individual segments of the antenna (flagellomeres) are not directly controlled by muscle. If you really want to nerd out on insect antennae, here's an excellent article that goes far deeper: http://www.scholarpedia.org/article/Cockroach_antennae https://www.jungledragon.com/image/105393/ectobius_pallidus_heesch_netherlands.html Anatomy,Cockroach ID help,Ectobius pallidus,Extreme Macro,Tawny cockroach

Distribution

In Europe, the species is known from southern England, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Spain and Portugal. In North Africa it has been recorded in Algeria and Tunisia.
It has been recorded from North America as an adventive species from around 1948 (published in 1951 as "Ectobius lividus")
Ectobius pallidus - female, cleaning antenna This one was found by Ben Gaxiola on his front door in Vlaardingen (Netherlands), very late in the year and in the middle of town - both quite unusual for this species, so at first we expected it to be one of two new arrivals (expansive species from the south of Europe). I shot these images for ID and discussion, but the species is still missing on JD, so hey ... Here are other shots of the same individual: https://www.jungledragon.com/image/69165/ectobius_pallidus_-_female_on_wood.html https://www.jungledragon.com/image/69166/ectobius_pallidus_-_female_on_leaf.html Cockroach,Ectobiidae,Ectobius,Ectobius pallidus,Spotted Mediterranean Cockroach,Tawny cockroach,compound eyes

Habitat

Ectobius pallidus can be found in woodland, heathland and meadows, with a preference for sandy dunes. It will usually stay in the leaf-litter, but will sometimes mount brushes or trees. It is known to be attracted to light.
Ectobius pallidus - nymph, darker Cockroach,Ectobiidae,Ectobius,Ectobius pallidus,Spotted Mediterranean Cockroach,Tawny cockroach

Reproduction

Valerie Brown (1973), from her observations and following Ragge (1965), concluded that the species likely has a two year life cycle with six nymphal instars, overwintering as ootheca in the first year an as a fourth instar nymph in the second winter, resuming final development in April.

References:

Some text fragments are auto parsed from Wikipedia.

Flint, O.S. (1951) A new cockroach record from the United States. Bulletin of the Brooklyn
Entomological Society, vol.46, p.53.

Roth, Louis M.; Willis, Edwin R. (1957) Observations on the Biology of Ectobius pallidus (Olivier) (Blattaria, Blattidae). Transactions of the American Entomological Society, Vol. 83(1), pp.31-37 + 3 plates. American Entomological Society.

Hoebeke, E.R.; Carter, M.E. (2010) First North American record of Ectobius lucidus (Hagenbach) (Blattodea: Blattellidae: Ectobiinae). Proc. Ent. Soc. Wash. Vol.112, pp.229-238.

Brown, V.K. (1973) The overwintering stages of Ectobius lapponiczu (L.) (Dictyoptera : Blattidae). - J.Ent.(A), vol.48(1), pp.11-24.

Ragge, D.R. (1965) Grasshoppers, Crickets and Cockroaches. XII (299pp, 130figs, 22pls). London.
Taxonomy
KingdomAnimalia
DivisionArthropoda
ClassInsecta
OrderBlattodea
FamilyEctobiidae
GenusEctobius
SpeciesE. pallidus
Photographed in
Germany
Netherlands