Blattella germanica
(Linnaeus, 1767) · speciesAt a glance
Sources12 archives
Databases and archives Blattella germanica's data was compiled from.
WikipediaWikimedia Foundation17 languages↗
BioWikiNetmultilingual Wikipediamultilingual↗
GBIFGlobal Biodiversity Information Facility5 675 records↗
ENAEuropean Nucleotide Archive · EMBL-EBI480 eDNA detections↗
BOLD SystemsCentre for Biodiversity Genomics412 specimens↗
LOTUSNatural Products (Wikidata)compounds↗
NPASSNat. Product Activity & Species Sourcecompounds↗
Open Tree of LifeOpenTreephylogeny backbone↗
GoaTGenomes on a Tree · Sangergenome & karyotype↗
NCBIUS National Library of Medicinegenome & karyotype↗
Tree of SexTree of Sex Consortiumgenome & karyotype↗
GLoBIGlobal Biotic Interactionsbiotic interactions↗Every layer below draws on the sources above — open one to explore it, or use ← → to move between tabs.
The German cockroach (Blattella germanica), colloquially known as the croton bug, is a species of small cockroach, typically about 1.1 to long. In color it varies from tan to almost black, and it has two dark, roughly parallel, streaks on the pronotum running anteroposteriorly from behind the head to the base of the wings. Although B. germanica has wings, it can barely fly, although it may glide when disturbed. Of the few species of cockroach that are domestic pests, it probably is the most widely troublesome example. It is very closely related to the Asian cockroach, and to the casual observer, the two appear nearly identical and may be mistaken for each other. However, the Asian cockroach is attracted to light and can fly like a moth, while the German cockroach cannot.
No narrative description available for this taxon yet.
No structured trait data for this taxon yet.
Compounds documented for Blattella germanica across natural-product and food-composition databases — not just the ~150 nutrients on a classic label ("nutritional dark matter").
Compound class profile5 classes
Documented compounds37 total
| Compound | Class | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| (+)-alpha-Thujone | present | NPASS | |
| (1R)-2,2,4-trimethyl-5-oxocyclohex-3-ene-1-carboxylic acid | present | NPASS | |
| (1S,2S,4aR,5R,8aS)-4a-methyl-8-methylidene-2-prop-1-en-2-yl-1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8a-octahydronaphthalene-1,5-diol | present | NPASS | |
| (1S,3R,5S)-3-hydroxy-7,7-dimethyl-2-methylidenebicyclo[3.1.1]heptan-6-one | present | NPASS | |
| (3R,11S)-3,11-dimethylnonacosan-2-one | present | LOTUS | |
| (3S)-3-methyl-5-[(1R,2R,4S)-1,3,3-trimethyl-7-oxabicyclo[2.2.1]heptan-2-yl]pent-1-en-3-ol | present | NPASS | |
| (3S,3'S,3aR,4S,4'R,5'S,6S,8'R,9'E,10E,11aR)-3',4-dihydroxy-3,5',10,10'-tetramethylspiro[3a,4,5,8,9,11a-hexahydro-3H-cyclodeca[b]furan-6,15'-7,14-dioxatricyclo[11.4.0.04,8]heptadeca-1(13),9-diene]-2,6',7-trione | present | NPASS | |
| (3S,3aR,4S,10E,11aR)-4-hydroxy-3,10-dimethyl-6-methylidene-3a,4,5,8,9,11a-hexahydro-3H-cyclodeca[b]furan-2,7-dione | present | NPASS | |
| (3S,3aR,4S,5aR,6R,9aS,9bR)-4,6-dihydroxy-3,5a,9-trimethyl-3,3a,4,5,6,7,9a,9b-octahydrobenzo[g][1]benzofuran-2-one | present | NPASS | |
| (3S,3aR,4S,5aR,6R,9aS,9bR)-4,6-dihydroxy-3,5a-dimethyl-9-methylidene-3a,4,5,6,7,8,9a,9b-octahydro-3H-benzo[g][1]benzofuran-2-one | present | NPASS |
A DNA barcode is a short, standardised stretch of genes that works like a fingerprint — enough to tell one species from another. Below is the molecular trace Blattella germanica has left across the world's sequence archives.
At a glance
★ the standard DNA barcode for this group — the short region actually read to tell this species apart. The rest are extra genes sequenced along the way.
Besides the big genome in the nucleus, cells carry a small, circular loop of DNA inside the cell's energy factories — the mitochondria. It is inherited almost only from the mother and is a leftover from ancient bacteria that moved into the cell. The mitochondrial markers above (ND*, COX, CYTB…) are read from exactly this loop. Outer ring = one strand, inner ring = the other.
The complete instruction manual Blattella germanica carries — its genome. We read it from three angles — how big it is, how the DNA is packed into chromosomes, and how completely it has been sequenced — and explain how to read each value as you go.
Genome sizehow big the whole instruction manual is
Measured in base pairs (bp) — the individual letters of DNA (human ≈ 3.2 Gb, a bacterium a few million). The chart places this genome on a logarithmic scale — each step to the right is ten times bigger — among reference organisms. Across species a bigger genome loosely tracks with larger cells, slower growth and lower-energy lifestyles (powered flight favours small genomes) — yet it does not imply more genes or a more advanced organism (the long-standing C-value paradox).
Chromosomes & ploidyhow the DNA is packaged
2n is the full chromosome count in a normal body cell; n is a gamete (egg or sperm), which carries half. Ploidy is how many complete chromosome sets each cell holds — 2× (diploid) is typical for animals, while higher levels (polyploidy) are common in plants. Click any value below to see the underlying records and sources.
2n 244×GoaT · Animal Chromosome Counts Database · GoaT · Tree of Sex Database · GoaT · Polyneoptera Karyotype Database +1
Sequencing statusassembly quality — how far to trust these numbers
Assembly level tells you how finished the sequence is — from fragmented contigs, through scaffolds, up to a full chromosome-level assembly. BUSCO % estimates completeness: the share of genes expected to be present that were actually found. These describe the data quality, not the organism.
How far back this lineage goes — and how we know. Everything here is measured in Ma, short for “mega-annum”: millions of years ago. The chart reads left to right like a calendar of the Earth, from the deep past on the left to today at the right edgetop to bottom like a core drilled through the Earth, from the deep past at the top down to today at the bottom.
At a glance
When this lineage existed
How to read this: the coloured strip along the bottomdown the left is the geological calendar — the standard epochs (Pliocene, Pleistocene…) every museum uses, shown so you can see which chapter of Earth's history this lineage lived in. This lineage is a young one, so the strip is zoomed in to epochs — the finer subdivisions inside a period. The orange marker is the DNA clock: DNA accumulates mutations at a roughly steady rate, so comparing this species' DNA with its relatives estimates when the lineage split off — independently of any fossil.
Record type5 675 records
Origin
Range
Wildobservation + sensor
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
Museum / Voucheredphysical evidence
Backed by a physical specimen — a herbarium sheet, sample or voucher held in a collection. “Vouchered” means supported by material evidence, not just an observation.
Cultivated / Captivenot free-living
A living individual in a botanical garden, zoo or nursery — cultivated or kept, not free-living.
Wildobservation + sensor
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
Holding institutions30 of 65 geolocated
Institutions and collections holding physical, vouchered specimens of this species — click a row to fly to it on the map.
| Institution | Specimens |
|---|---|
| CUlocation not on record | 100 |
| ASUlocation not on record | 79 |
| University of Guelphlocation not on record | 71 |
| East Lansing, US | 46 |
| Chicago, US | 44 |
| Vancouver, CA | 44 |
| Edmonton, CA | 37 |
| 36 | |
| US | 35 |
| Auckland, NZ | 34 |
| US | 32 |
| University of Tokyo, Department of Zoologylocation not on record | 26 |
| Paro, BT | 23 |
| Champaign, US | 22 |
| Natural History Museum of Utahlocation not on record | 20 |
| Sydney, AU | 17 |
| Museums Victorialocation not on record | 13 |
| Tartu, EE | 10 |
| QVMAGlocation not on record | 9 |
| Montgomery, US | 9 |
| New Haven, US | 9 |
| University of Central Floridalocation not on record | 8 |
| Toyama, JP | 7 |
| EISlocation not on record | 7 |
| Tromsø, NO | 7 |
| Bonn, DE | 7 |
| Tasmanian Museum & Art Gallerylocation not on record | 7 |
| Helsinki, FI | 6 |
| Laboratoire Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive, University Lyon 1location not on record | 6 |
| Universite Claude Bernard Lyon 1location not on record | 6 |
| San Nicolás de los Garza, MX | 6 |
| Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural Historylocation not on record | 4 |
| ZMAAlocation not on record | 4 |
| Centre for Biodiversity Genomicslocation not on record | 4 |
| Royal Saskatchewan Museumlocation not on record | 4 |
| Rifconlocation not on record | 3 |
| Ciudad de México, MX | 3 |
| SFRAlocation not on record | 3 |
| U. S. Food and Drug Administration, Center for Veterinary Medicinelocation not on record | 3 |
| Museu Nacional de História Natural e da Ciêncialocation not on record | 3 |
| NSMKlocation not on record | 3 |
| San Luis Potosí, MX | 3 |
| KCMNlocation not on record | 2 |
| Ciudad de México, MX | 2 |
| Sanda, JP | 2 |
| Tomioka, JP | 2 |
| Stockholm, SE | 2 |
| Durban Natural Science Museumlocation not on record | 2 |
| Chicago, US | 2 |
| DPIlocation not on record | 1 |
| Essig Museum of Entomologylocation not on record | 1 |
| Essig Museum of Entomologylocation not on record | 1 |
| NCMGlocation not on record | 1 |
| San Diego, US | 1 |
| Mayagüez, PR | 1 |
| WIlocation not on record | 1 |
| Gujarat State Biotechnology Missionlocation not on record | 1 |
| MZIANlocation not on record | 1 |
| SLU Artdatabankenlocation not on record | 1 |
| Philadelphia, US | 1 |
| Cornell University Insect Collectionlocation not on record | 1 |
| Cambridge, US | 1 |
| NHMOlocation not on record | 1 |
| BioFokuslocation not on record | 1 |
| Muzeum i Instytut Zoologii Polskiej Akademii Nauklocation not on record | 1 |
Cultivated / Captivenot free-living
A living individual in a botanical garden, zoo or nursery — cultivated or kept, not free-living.
Where the DNA of Blattella germanica was picked up in samples of water, soil or air — nobody saw the organism, only its DNA left behind. A trace is a clue that the species was near, not a confirmed sighting.
Signal
Where its DNA was found
How strong is each trace?
Measured at samplingin-field
Modelled climatemodelled
How to read this: each dot is one detection of this species' DNA in an environmental sample. The confidence meter weighs how many independent studies and places back up the signal — one detection in one study is a hint; many across several studies is solid. Records dated before 2008 (when eDNA methods began) are treated as likely mislabeled and left off the map.