The heat-loving furniture cockroach Supella longipalpa, confirmed by scientists from the Estonian University of Life Sciences, is a previously unregistered species in Estonia and the Baltic countries.
This species apparently entered the dormitory of the Estonian University of Life Sciences with people arriving from abroad who brought the insect in their luggage from warmer regions. The discovery was facilitated by a university researcher who found the cockroach and took it for identification to experienced colleagues.
"The discovery of new species is sometimes a result of several circumstances, as was the case this time. In any case, the prerequisites for such discoveries are interest and curiosity about the surrounding world, which are abundant in universities," said Olavi Kurina, a professor of entomological systematics at the Estonian University of Life Sciences.
The new species for Estonia was identified based on both external morphology and molecular characteristics. The furniture cockroach is characterized by two brown stripes that shine through its wings. In males, the wings cover the entire abdomen, while in females, they are slightly shorter. The species is presumed to be native to Africa, but it has spread worldwide with human assistance. It is found in tropical and warmer temperate regions. In Southern Europe, this species is widespread; however, in Northern Europe, only isolated finds are known in southern Sweden and Finland.
"For Estonia, the furniture cockroach is the fifth species of cockroach. In our latitudes, one can also encounter the German cockroach, the black cockroach, and two species of forest cockroaches," Kurina explained.
In Estonia, this species thrives in heated premises and is capable of completing its full life cycle. Like the German and black cockroaches, the furniture cockroach is also a synanthropic species, and outdoor conditions in Estonia are unsuitable for its life. However, this species deserves attention as it can be a carrier of various bacteria and helminth eggs. Nevertheless, residents of the dormitory have nothing to worry about: the individuals discovered at the end of last summer have already been addressed by the pest control service.
"Regular pest control is common practice in accommodation facilities; there is nothing new for us in this. We are just very happy that this time we were able to contribute to science by discovering a new species before the pest control," said Roland Aik Kask, a board member of the Torni hostel.
The finding of the furniture cockroach in Tartu was reported in a scientific article published in early March in the journal Check List. The Estonian University of Life Sciences added the control specimens to its zoological collection.
