The American Cockroach prefers warm and humid environments, usually with temperatures in excess of 82°F.

These cockroaches are commonly found in the sewers, steam tunnels, and storm drains. They readily live outdoors, commonly found at zoos and animal rearing facilities. Sometimes they forage from sewers and other areas into the ground floor of a structure.

Adult females carry their egg cases around for about 6 days and then cement them to a protected surface, where they incubate for about 2 months or longer. The egg case is about 3/8 inch long, they are brown when laid but turn black in just a few days. Each egg capsule contains about a dozen young. A female and her offspring can produce over 800 cockroaches in a year.

While many people attempt "do it yourself pest control" with cockroaches, they can be very difficult to exterminate without professional help.