Death's Head Cockroach vs Plum Sawfly

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Death's Head Cockroach Plum Sawfly
Scientific Name Blaberus craniifer Hoplocampa flava
Order Blattodea Hymenoptera
Family Blaberidae Tenthredinidae
Size 50-75mm 4-6 mm
Habitat Caves Orchards
Diet Fruit Feeders Fruit Feeders
Regions Central America, South America Europe
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Death's Head Cockroach

A large cockroach with a distinctive skull-like marking on its pronotum. It is a popular feeder insect and pet species. When disturbed it can produce a loud hissing sound by expelling air.

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Did You Know?

The dark marking on its thorax closely resembles a human skull or vampire face, inspiring its morbid common name.

Plum Sawfly

A small, yellowish-brown sawfly that is a pest of plum orchards. Larvae bore into developing plum fruitlets, causing them to drop prematurely.

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Did You Know?

Larvae can be detected by their distinctive wet frass, which oozes from entry holes in young plum fruitlets.