Galapagos Species Database

The Galapagos Species Database shares the information about the species from our Natural History Collections.

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Anaplecta lateralis (Burmeister, 1838)

cucaracha

Scavenger; arid to pampa and agriculture zone; at lights and in traps in forest; March-May; first discovered in 1991 and very common in pastures and forests buy 1996.

Taxonomy

Domain
Eukaryota

Kingdom
Animalia

Phylum
Arthropoda

Class
Insecta

Order
Blattodea

Superfamily
Blaberoidea

Family
Blattellidae

Genus
Anaplecta

Species
lateralis

Taxon category: Accepted

Origin: Introduced - established

Introduction

Year of first record: 1991

Mode of introduction: Accidental

Introduction Pathway: Stowaway

Subpathway: Hitchhiker on transport vehicles/cargo

Introduced status: Naturalized

Invasive status: Unlikely to become invasive

Distribution

Map of specimen collection localities or observation records for this species in our collections database.

Distribution: Santa Cruz

References

  • Causton, C.E. Sevilla, C. (2008) Latest Records of Introduced Invertebrates in Galapagos and Measures to control them. Galapagos Report 2006-2007, CDF, GNP and INGALA, Puerto Ayora, Galapagos, Ecuador, p. 142-145.
  • Peck, S.B. (1996) Diversity and distribution of the orthopteroid insects of the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador. Canadian Journal of Zoology 74: 1497-1510.
  • Peck, S.B. Roth, L.M. (1992) Cockroaches of the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador, with descriptions of three new species (Insecta: Blattodea). Canadian Journal of Zoology 70(12): 2202-2217.
  • Peck, S.B. Heraty, J., Landry, B. & Sinclair, B.J. (1998) Introduced insect fauna of an oceanic archipelago: The Galápagos Islands, Ecuador. Am. Entomol. 44: 218-237.
  • Peck, S.B. (2001) Smaller Orders of Insects of the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador: Evolution, Ecology, and Diversity. NRC Research Press, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, 278 pp.

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This page should be cited as follows:

"Galapagos Species Database, Anaplecta lateralis", dataZone. Charles Darwin Foundation, https://datazone.darwinfoundation.org/en/checklist/?species=5529. Accessed 1 November 2026.