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Tiny Kitchen-Loving Beetle
Dear Bugman,
My roommate and I have spotted several of these little beetles wandering around our kitchen area. We even found one in our microwave! At first I thought they were baby cockroaches, but they don’t act like any of the cockroaches I’ve encountered in Orange County, California. As we’ve only lived in our apartment about two months, I can’t tell you when they started appearing. The one I took a picture of is about .25cm in length and has a pretty flat profile. It’s antennae are about as long as he is and are in constant motion. I checked around on the web for other beetles but I have been unsuccessful in finding out about this one. Any help you can lend us would be appreciated. Thanks! Sincerely,
Marlene in Orange, California

Hi Marlene,
This is an immature Cockroach. We will see if Eric Eaton can provide a species name for us. Eric quickly wrote back: “The immature cockroach is probably a brown-banded cockroach, Supella longipalpa. They tend to be found in electric appliances that, even when not running, are warm and cozy:-) Look for them behind picture frames as well. More information can be found searching on the scientific name and then visiting .edu and .gov websites for the most accurate facts. Eric”

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