Balta bicolor is a type of cockroach from the genus Balta.[1] Native to eastern Australia, the species has been identified in New Zealand since 2009.
| Balta bicolor | |
|---|---|
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| A Balta bicolor specimen in Auckland, New Zealand | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Blattodea |
| Family: | Ectobiidae |
| Genus: | Balta |
| Species: | B. bicolor
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| Binomial name | |
| Balta bicolor Hebard, 1943
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Description
editBalta bicolor has a relatively pale face, occiput and interocular area, with dark antennae. It is visually similar to Ellipsidion cockroaches, and can be distinguished from Balta transversa by its deeper head proportions.[1]
Distribution and habitat
editThe species is native to eastern Australia.[2] In 2009, Biosecurity New Zealand first identified the species in New Zealand (as Balta bicolour), after being found in an Auckland kitchen.[3]
Balta bicolor is typically found in plant litter or under bark.[4]
Gallery
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References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Balta bicolor.
- ^ a b Hebard, M. (1943) Australian Blattidae of the subfamilies Chorisoneurinae and Ectobiinae (Orthoptera). Monogr. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philad. 4, 1–129.
- ^ "species Balta bicolor Hebard, 1943". Cockroach Species File. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
- ^ MAF Biosecurity New Zealand (2009). "Pest watch: 20/02/2009 – 31/03/2009". Biosecurity Magazine (91): 26–27.
- ^ "Species Balta bicolor Hebard, 1943". Australian Faunal Directory. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
Further reading
edit- Dahms, E. 1972. Type-specimens of cockroaches (Blattodea) in the Queensland Museum. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 16: 275
- Rentz, D. (2014). A Guide to the Cockroaches of Australia. Collingwood: CSIRO Publishing. p. 260.
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