It's Summer In NYC, And The Cockroaches Have Taken Flight

July 2, 2019, 12:50 p.m.

"For roaches, this is not new. They've been doing this for thousands of years: 'It's hot, let's fly.' For people ... it's like Roaches Gone Wild."

When temperatures soar, so do cockroaches.

When temperatures soar, so do cockroaches.

I legitimately enjoy summer, a few minor-ish peeves aside. For example: I would prefer to exist in continual sweater weather, rather than the atmospheric equivalent of a feverish mouth (New York in August). Living inside of a coal furnace is bad because it threatens to suffocate you in your sleep like a sodden humidity blanket, but also because—mostly because—it emboldens the cockroaches. Something about soaring temps seems to inspire these heckboys to greater heights; that, or the heat makes roaches agitated and punchy in the same way it makes humans agitated and punchy. Whatever, the end result is the same: In summertime, cockroaches like to skim clumsily through the air, their clattering buzz absolutely ravaging your illusion of domestic hygiene.

Before moving to New York City, I had not encountered a flying roach, nor had anything prepared me for the possibility. About a month into my first real lease, I found regular, ground-bound roaches—lots of them, taking full advantage of the gaping holes around our pipes, in our floors and walls, yawning under the kitchen sink. But that felt standard-issue, and at least the swarm had not attained the stunning proportions of the hamburger patty-sized monsters allegedly winging around my then-boss's basement. The roaches resisted my better attempts to obliterate them through the winter and spring, storing up their resentment like bears build body fat for hibernation.

In the summer of 2014, the roaches let fly with all that rage, literally let fly.

I stood at my dresser one night, alone in the apartment, folding away my laundry when I heard a distinctive, crispy rattle behind me. We tell ourselves stories in order to live peaceably alongside household pests, and so I weakly dismissed the small racket as... the wind? an especially large gnat?...until a large blur zipped through my peripheral vision, a creature too big to be anything other than, yes, a fucking enormous cockroach, flicking across my room like a sinister blimp.

Arguably the sole upshot to inhabiting an obviously infested apartment is that I had weaponry already on-hand. I shot down the invader with a spray bottle filled with soap water, finishing it with a wooden clog. Shocked and appalled, I still spent the rest of the night in my roommate's bed, ear plugs in and head fully buried under all of her pillows.

Cockroach wings, they work. Every day I learn new things. And every summer I spend in NYC, I submit to the risk that a roach might fling its horrible thorax into the side of my head, because according to Gil Bloom, president and associate certified entomologist at Standard Pest Management in Queens, roach flight is one natural consequence of summer weather. Welcome to "the romantic season for cockroaches," friends: When temps exceed about 90 degrees, cockroaches hit their stride.

"Roaches and most pests do well during warmer weather," Bloom told Gothamist. Their birth rates increase as temperatures climb, and in summer, cockroaches may progress from egg to nymph to adult in half their typical time, he explained, noting that "cockroaches are cold-blooded, so ... their activity rate increases as the temperature increases... They're out more, they're enjoying the hot heat, and we do see a larger incidence of flying. And because we don't usually associate that with these insects, it becomes a phenomenon."

Two types of cockroaches—the double XL American cockroach, or waterbug, and the more common German cockroach—reign in New York City, and both can launch themselves through the air. German cockroaches, which are mercifully smaller than their finger-length counterparts, will glide from a high elevation to a lower point; they may be seeking cooler climes, or they may be executing a defense mechanism after you, a murderous lummox, disturb them. Regardless, German cockroaches won't take off flapping like their titanic American counterparts will (and do, see above), but pretty much all NYC roaches have the capacity for some form of flight. It's just that they don't execute all that often, so New Yorkers may not be as accustomed to liftoff as, say, Florida residents.

"For roaches, this is not new. They've been doing this for thousands of years: 'It's hot, let's fly,'" Bloom noted. "For people, especially in New York where this is a rare phenomenon, it's like Roaches Gone Wild."

Unfortunately, you can safely assume that one airborne roach could mean a whole horde of their keyed-up compatriots lurks nearby. "They don't fly a lot, so in order to see one, you could extrapolate that you might have a number of them," Bloom said. Roach flight remains an unusual, if alarming, occurrence, and if you witness it, well... definitely don't read this article on how German cockroaches have become nearly impossible to kill with chemical pesticides! (Bloom, for what it's worth, believes that to be a "bullshit" notion.) But do rest assured that, come fall, things should—should!—settle back into more regular cabinet rustling, absent the invasions of your airspace. This, too, shall pass.

This has been the latest installment of our NYC Summer Sucks. As we now know, cockroaches LOVE summer, as it gives them the gift of flight. Hit us up if you have any questions (use "Summer Sucks" in the subject line), or just want to commiserate. And please hashtag us in both your flying roach videos and your summer misery photos with #NYCSummerSucks.