Did You See a Black Roach?
Several species of cockroach are dark-colored or black. At first glance, many of them may look similar. However, they are very different and the same treatment usually will not work for all of them.
Oriental Cockroach
One of the most common black cockroaches is the oriental roach.
An adult female is about 1¼” long. The males are slightly shorter than the females. Oriental cockroaches are usually shiny black. The adults do not have fully developed wings, so most of the abdomen is exposed.
Oriental cockroaches prefer damp areas that are somewhat cool. It is common to find them under ivy or ground cover. They also hide in water meter boxes and drains. These roaches do not fly and they cannot climb smooth vertical surfaces, so when they move into homes they are usually in the basement or at ground level.
Woods Cockroach
Woods cockroaches may also appear be black.
Photo credit: https://entomology.ca.uky.edu/
If black cockroaches start to be a problem, the best approach is to go outside and look around. See if there are hiding places that the cockroaches could be using. Is the firewood stacked next to the house? Put it up onto a rack and move it as far away from the house as possible.