Outdoor Activity and Distribution of the Smokybrown Cockroach, Periplaneta fuliginosa (Dictyoptera: Blattidae)

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Abstract
Aspects of the outdoor activity and distribution of the smokybrown cockroach, Periplaneta fuliginosa (Serville), were studied during a 14-day period in July 1984 in Houston, Tex. Daily trapping revealed an age-class distribution of 27.2% adults (260 females : 244 males) and 72.2% nymphs (630 small : 475 medium : 214 large). Trap-catch was significantly lower following rains and correlated to the time when it rained. Rain early in the day resulted in higher trap-catches than rains occurring later in the day. The mark-recapture technique was used to estimate adult population size, movement, and home range. Of 240 females and 206 males marked and released, 12.1% and 7.3%, respectively, were recaptured at least once. A mean of 338 female and 386 male P. fuliginosa was estimated living on the 0.23-ha study site. Of recaptured adults, 34.3% of the females and 58.8% of the males moved at least 2 m. Mean circular home ranges were 107 m2 for females and 280 m2 for males. Traps located near harborage sites caught >70% nymphs, whereas other traps caught <43% nymphs.