Where do cockroaches come from? How did they take over the world?

From where did cockroaches come and how have they spread across the world?

According to a recent study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, modern cockroaches most likely originated in India or Myanmar before spreading westward over the last few thousand years.

Here’s how cockroaches have spread around the world and became the pest they are today.

The spread of cockroaches

A new study uses genetics to chart the spread of cockroaches across the globe, from humble beginnings in southeast Asia to Europe and beyond. The findings span thousands of years of cockroach history and suggest the pests may have scuttled across the globe by hitching a ride with another species: people.

“It’s not just an insect story,” said Stephen Richards, an assistant professor at Baylor College of Medicine who studies insect genes and was not involved with the study. “It’s an insect and humanity story.”

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Researchers analysed the genes of over 280 cockroaches from 17 countries and six continents. They confirmed that the German cockroach — a species found worldwide — actually originated in southeast Asia, likely evolving from the Asian cockroach around 2,100 years ago. Scientists have long suspected the German cockroach’s Asian origins since similar species still live there.

The research was published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The cockroaches then globe-trotted via two major routes. They travelled west to the West Asia about 1,200 years ago, perhaps hitchhiking in soldiers’ breadbaskets. And they may have stowed away on Dutch and British East India Company trade routes to get to Europe about 270 years ago, according to scientists’ reconstruction and historical records.

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Once they arrived, inventions like the steam engine and indoor plumbing likely helped the insects travel further and get cozy living indoors, where they are most commonly found today.

Researchers said exploring how cockroaches conquered past environments may lead to better pest control.

German cockroaches’ origins traced to India and Myanmar

Modern cockroaches may have originated in India or Myanmar and spread westward over the last several thousand years. German cockroaches are among the most common and troublesome pests, preferring warm, humid environments such as kitchens and bathrooms. They are known to transmit diseases like Salmonella and E coli. Despite their name, German cockroaches were first described in Europe in the 1700s, leading many to believe they originated there.

“The origin and spread of the German cockroach are shrouded in mystery,” the researchers stated. Historical records show a global spread from Europe in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, but their closest relatives are found in Africa and Asia, reports Newsweek.

The study discovered that German cockroaches are closely related to the Asian cockroach Blattella asahinai, which is native to the Bay of Bengal region. According to genetic analysis, the German cockroach evolved from an Asian species found in India and Myanmar over 2,000 years ago. They began migrating west about 1,200 years ago, arriving in Germany around 250 years ago, and eventually spreading globally by the early twentieth century, thanks to modern transportation and indoor heating.

Although Europe was not central to the German cockroaches’ early spread, European advances in transport and housing played a significant role in its recent global expansion. Understanding the cockroach’s evolutionary history and genetics could aid in the development of more effective pest control strategies, particularly for overcoming insecticide resistance.

“Future studies could focus on the functional genomic aspects to understand the rapid spread and evolution of insecticide resistance in German cockroaches,” the authors wrote, reports Newsweek.

With inputs from AP