Giant Burrowing Cockroach vs Western Drywood Termite

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Giant Burrowing Cockroach Western Drywood Termite
Scientific Name Macropanesthia rhinoceros Incisitermes minor
Order Blattodea Blattodea
Family Blaberidae Kalotermitidae
Size 60-80 mm 4-11 mm
Habitat Woodlands Caves
Diet Herbivores Wood Feeders
Regions Oceania Western United States, Northern Mexico
Conservation Least Concern Not Evaluated

Giant Burrowing Cockroach

The worlds heaviest cockroach species at up to 35 grams and 80 mm long. Native to Australia, it digs permanent burrows up to 1 meter deep and cares for its young.

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Did You Know?

Unlike the pest cockroaches people dread, this species is a devoted parent — mothers carry live young on their backs and raise them in underground burrows for nine months.

Western Drywood Termite

A common drywood termite of the western United States that infests structural timbers and furniture. Unlike subterranean species, they require no soil contact.

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Did You Know?

Their dry fecal pellets, pushed out of tiny kick-out holes, are often the first visible sign of an infestation.