Have you got a Bed bugs infestation in your home? If it is so, the urge to get rid of them may raise a question in your mind which is, do cockroaches eat Bed bugs?
In this blog post, I will tell you the relationship between bed bugs and cockroaches and whether cockroaches eat bed bugs or not.
I will also guide you on how to control infestations caused by bed bugs and even cockroaches. So, this article is going to be full of knowledge and details.
I have experience controlling different pest infestations and love to gather information about their behaviors.
Do Cockroaches Eat Bed Bugs?
The simple answer to this question is yes; cockroaches can eat bed bugs because their mandibles have enough ability to bite them. Moreover, the digestive system of cockroaches can digest and utilize nutrients from bed bugs to get energy for their normal functioning.
Bed bugs contain proteins and fat; these nutrients can help roaches to survive and grow.
The notable point is that cockroaches eat bed bugs only in certain conditions; they don’t prefer eating bed bugs, so roaches can’t control the number of bed bugs.
Besides, bed bugs reproduce at a higher rate which helps in increasing their population. Therefore consumption of bed bugs by roaches does not affect their population.
Do Cockroaches Harm Bed Bugs?
Cockroaches are known to be the most flexible insects, and there are two reasons behind them. Firstly, roaches can eat almost anything containing natural ingredients.
Secondly, roaches are able to adapt themselves for the sake of survival in unfavorable conditions, and this property is directly linked to their ability to consume everything.
Cockroaches are mostly known for feeding on foods that are edible for humans because such foods are more nutritious.
But, when they don’t get their preferable food, they go for other choices, and bed bugs are one of those. Cockroaches are also known to eat their fellow roaches after their death.
This means they have the ability to decompose the dead bodies of insects. Moreover, roaches can eat small insects, and bed bugs facilitate this requirement as they are so small in size.
Why Do Cockroaches Feed on Bed Bugs?
The purpose of life for cockroaches is survival, and for survival, life-supporting reactions are essential. Moreover, it is vital for organs to work correctly.
All these functions need energy which comes from carbohydrates. Moreover, for survival, roaches also need to grow and reproduce, which requires proteins.
So all the nutrients are essential for roaches for different body functions. Cockroaches’ first preference is to get these nutrients from other foods.
But when the population increases, the competition for survival also increases; therefore, roaches go for other options to get food like paints, paper, nails, skin, hairs, garbage, and much more.
Bed bugs contain essential nutrients, and roaches have decomposing abilities; both these factors are the reasons why roaches eat bed bugs.
Cockroach Species that Eat Bed Bugs
There are different types of cockroaches that eat bed bugs; I have mentioned some details of these types below, so let’s explore these types and add something to our knowledge.
1. German Cockroaches
German cockroaches are one of those cockroaches that are found in our houses, apartments, hostels, and hotels. They are not too big in size and have a simple structure.
These cockroaches have wings by birth, but these wings don’t have enough ability to carry their weight nicely or control them during flying, so they use their fast-moving legs to move.
These cockroaches were first discovered in European countries. They are brown to black with some strips present on their body.
2. Brown-banded Cockroaches
The appearance of these roaches is hidden in their name. These cockroaches look brown due to the presence of wide bands on their body that are light brown.
These cockroaches are also small and have a simple structure. Besides, these roaches are present in different countries, so it is a widely spread species of roaches.
But due to their large population in the United States, they are considered the main habitants of this country.
3. Oriental Cockroaches
Oriental cockroaches are common cockroaches that choose our houses to live in and spread various diseases, but they are not as common as they seem.
Oriental cockroaches are unique in their appearance. However, you can note one common feature about the species mentioned above is that most are small, but this is not true for Oriental roaches.
Oriental roaches are not small. Instead, they measure about 1 inch in length.
Can Cockroaches and Bed Bugs Live in the Same House?
Unfortunately, the answer to this question is yes, as I have dealt with both these pests at the same time. As you know, the choice of shelter varies from insect to insect.
Actually, this depends on the conditions required by cockroaches and bed bugs. The main goal of both these insects is survival, and both insects need different conditions for their living.
1. Conditions Required by Roaches
Cockroaches need warm temperatures because they feel comfortable in such temperatures, and warm temperatures increase their growth rate as well.
Moreover, these insects also prefer a place from where they can quickly get access to food and water, which is essential to keep them hydrated and sustain their life.
In addition, roaches love dark places because they prefer to be hidden and feel safe in this way. All these conditions make our houses the best place to live for roaches.
You can also guess the favorite place of roaches in our homes. Yes, you have guessed right, roaches love to hide in kitchens and bathrooms.
2. Conditions Required by Bed Bugs
On the other hand, bed bugs are well-known pests that use human blood to carry out their normal body processes, just like mosquitoes.
Therefore these insects also love to live close to humans, which is essential for their survival. These insects feed on human blood at night time when they are sleeping.
So, can you guess the favorite living place of bed bugs? Bed bugs love to use our bedrooms as their shelter, which is also the reason for their name.
Hence proved that both cockroaches and bed bugs can infest the same house.
Infestation of Bed Bugs in America
I have researched the infestation of bed bugs in America at different places, and the results are as under:
| No | Location | Percentage |
| 1 | Hotels | 80 % |
| 2 | Public transports | 52 % |
| 3 | Movie theaters | 49 % |
| 4 | Retail stores | 44 % |
| 5 | Medical facilities | 40 % |
| 6 | Homes | 36 % |
Can You Remove Bed Bug Infestation Using Cockroaches?
As I have stated above that cockroaches can eat bed bugs, so many people that are facing bed bug infestation may raise a question here: can we use roaches to get rid of bed bugs?
So the short and simple answer is no. Now let me explain to you the reasons.
- Bed bugs are not the leading food of roaches as they have many other options also.
- Roaches can eat bed bugs only if the food is unavailable and if they catch sight of them.
- The rate at which roaches eat bed bugs is lower than the reproduction rate of bed bugs.
- Cockroaches will only eat bed bugs if they find one, and bed bugs are hard to find because they are so small to detect easily.
- The habitat of roaches and nasty bugs is different in the same house, which leads to less interaction between roaches and bed bugs.
Who is the Most Dangerous? Cockroaches Vs. Bed Bugs
Cockroaches and nasty bugs are both known as pests because they invade human houses and spread various diseases to humans.
So having an infestation of either cockroaches or nasty bugs is not suitable for your health. So if you have any of both, follow the steps to remove them as early as possible.
Now, let’s compare and see in what ways cockroaches and bed bugs cause diseases in humans and why they are wrong.
1. Problems Caused by Cockroaches
Cockroaches carry different pathogens, and the most common is bacteria. These bacteria are not common, but they are disease-causing and spread various diseases, which include.
- Typhoid
- Cholera
- Dysentery
- Asthma
- Skin allergies
Cockroaches love dirty places because they get enough food there, but also, some disease-causing bacteria attach to their exoskeletons and move with them.
Roaches can transfer these bacteria to our accessories while feeding on the leftover food in our kitchens. They are larger in size than bed bugs.
If there is high competition due to large numbers, then roaches can also feed on our hair, nails, and skin at night. They can also cause damage to our electronics and books by feeding on paper.
2. Problems Caused by Bed Bugs
Bed bugs can also cause severe infestation in our homes and cause the following problems.
- Bed bugs love to feed on our blood.
- They cause various blood diseases.
- They are small in size and hard to detect.
- They reproduce faster than roaches.
- They cause skin rashes and diseases.
As you have gone through the problems caused by both of these pests, you can decide which is worse. Bed bugs appear to be more problematic than roaches.
I find it harder to treat bed bug infestation as compared to roaches because they are smaller in size and readily increase their population.
Which Pest is Difficult to Get Rid of? Cockroaches Vs. Bed Bugs.
As I have explained the problems caused by cockroaches and bed bugs, these both pests are dangerous, and they cause damage to human health in their own ways.
Therefore treating their infestation is important if you don’t want to get ill. Now here the question arises which pest is harder to remove; let’s see.
1. Control Methods for Cockroaches
For cockroaches, the best method is to use poison, so the way to give them poison is roach baits.
As I have stated, cockroaches are attracted to foods that are eaten by humans, so roach baits contain their favorite foods like sugar and fat and also poisonous chemicals.
Roach is attracted to bait due to the smell of food and intake of poison while eating that particular food. This caused the death of the roach after some days.
We can also use insecticides to kill roaches, but they are not as effective as these sprays.
2. Control Methods for Bed Bugs
On the other hand, we cannot use bait to attract bed bugs and kill them because the bed bugs are only attracted to human blood.
Moreover, bed bugs have the ability to develop immunity against chemicals present in pesticides. Therefore, insecticidal sprays have no effect on them.
So now you must be wondering how to kill bed bugs. Don’t worry, as I have an effective method to kill these pests, and this includes giving high-heat treatment.
If you have a bed bug infestation in your house, call professional pest controllers. Professionals have some temperature-rising modern equipment.
These devices or tools raise the temperature of the house permanently above 120 degrees or higher, depending on the intensity of the infestation.
Both bed bugs and cockroaches are unable to survive at extreme temperatures; therefore, they die.
As you have seen, the control methods for both bed bugs and cockroaches. In my opinion, it is difficult to get rid of both these insects, but bed bugs win this battle.
Summarizing Lines:
The urge to deal with bed bug infestation often forces people to ask, Do cockroaches eat bed bugs? So, roaches can eat bed bugs because they contain nutrients like protein and fat.
But bed bugs are not included in the preferable list, and they only eat them when they have nothing to eat and if they find a bed bug wandering around, which is not shared.
I have also compared both cockroaches and bed bugs in terms of their control and the problems caused by them. I hope you find this article fruitful.
FAQs:
Are Cockroaches and Bed bugs Enemies?
Cockroaches can eat bed bugs, but we cannot think of them as enemies because roaches only eat them when they have nothing to eat or they get to interact, which is less common.
Do Bed Bugs Have a Natural Enemy?
Yes, some species of ants and spiders naturally feed on bed bugs and use them as their permanent food for getting energy and nutrients.
Can Bed Bugs Live with Roaches?
Yes, bed bugs and roaches can live in the same house, but they can’t live in the same place because they have different preferences, and roaches are also included in bed bug predators.
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