Common Names of Insects Database
The ESA Common Names database is an essential reference for anyone who works with insects. It includes more than 2,000 common names and is searchable by common name, scientific name, author, order, family, genus, and species.
Interested individuals may propose new common names by submitting the Common Names Proposal Form that is reviewed by the Committee on the Common Names of Insects and voted on by the ESA Governing Board. Detailed information on the submission and approval process is available through the links in the sidebar to the right.
Our understanding of taxonomy evolves over time, and although the Committee on the Common Names of Insects does work to update the taxonomic information included in the ESA Common Names database, sometimes the committee is not aware of recent changes. If you see outdated taxonomic information in the ESA Common Names list, you can help by notifying the committee at pubs@entsoc.org.
Enter a search term in one or more of the filter fields below and click APPLY to see the results.
| Common Name | Scientific Name | Order | Family | Author | Genus | Species | notes | Date Taxonomy Last Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American cockroach | Periplaneta americana (Linnaeus) | BLATTODEA | Blattidae | (Linnaeus) | Periplaneta | americana | ||
| arid land subterranean termite | Reticulitermes tibialis Banks | BLATTODEA | Rhinotermitidae | Banks | Reticulitermes | tibialis | ||
| Asian cockroach | Blattella asahinai Mizukubo | BLATTODEA | Blattellidae | Mizukubo | Blattella | asahinai | ||
| Asian subterranean termite | Coptotermes gestroi | BLATTODEA | Rhinotermitidae | (Wasmann) | Coptotermes | gestroi | ||
| Australian cockroach | Periplaneta australasiae (Fabricius) | BLATTODEA | Blattidae | (Fabricius) | Periplaneta | australasiae | ||
| brown cockroach | Periplaneta brunnea Burmeister | BLATTODEA | Blattidae | Burmeister | Periplaneta | brunnea | ||
| brownbanded cockroach | Supella longipalpa (Fabricius) | BLATTODEA | Blattellidae | (Fabricius) | Supella | longipalpa | ||
| cinereous cockroach | Nauphoeta cinerea (Olivier) | BLATTODEA | Blaberidae | (Olivier) | Nauphoeta | cinerea | ||
| conehead termite | Nasutitermes corniger (Motschulsky) | BLATTODEA | Termitidae | (Motschulsky) | Nasutitermes | corniger | ||
| Cuban cockroach | Panchlora nivea (Linnaeus) | BLATTODEA | Blaberidae | (Linnaeus) | Panchlora | nivea | ||
| eastern subterranean termite | Reticulitermes flavipes (Kollar) | BLATTODEA | Rhinotermitidae | (Kollar) | Reticulitermes | flavipes | ||
| false German cockroach | Blattella lituricollis (Walker) | BLATTODEA | Blattellidae | (Walker) | Blattella | lituricollis | ||
| forest tree termite | Neotermes connexus Snyder | BLATTODEA | Kalotermitidae | Snyder | Neotermes | connexus | ||
| Formosan subterranean termite | Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki | BLATTODEA | Rhinotermitidae | Shiraki | Coptotermes | formosanus | ||
| German cockroach | Blattella germanica (Linnaeus) | BLATTODEA | Blattellidae | (Linnaeus) | Blattella | germanica | ||
| harlequin cockroach | Neostylopyga rhombifolia (Stoll) | BLATTODEA | Blattidae | (Stoll) | Neostylopyga | rhombifolia | ||
| lowland tree termite | Incisitermes immigrans (Snyder) | BLATTODEA | Kalotermitidae | (Snyder) | Incisitermes | immigrans | ||
| Madeira cockroach | Rhyparobia maderae (Fabricius) | BLATTODEA | Blaberidae | (Fabricius) | Rhyparobia | maderae | ||
| oriental cockroach | Blatta orientalis Linnaeus | BLATTODEA | Blattidae | Linnaeus | Blatta | orientalis | ||
| Pacific beetle cockroach | Diploptera punctata (Eschscholtz) | BLATTODEA | Blaberidae | (Eschscholtz) | Diploptera | punctata | ||
| Pacific cockroach | Euthyrrhapha pacifica (Coquebert) | BLATTODEA | Polyphagidae | (Coquebert) | Euthyrrhapha | pacifica | ||
| Pacific dampwood termite | Zootermopsis angusticollis (Hagen) | BLATTODEA | Termopsidae | (Hagen) | Zootermopsis | angusticollis | ||
| smokybrown cockroach | Periplaneta fuliginosa (Serville) | BLATTODEA | Blattidae | (Serville) | Periplaneta | fuliginosa | ||
| spotted Mediterranean cockroach | Ectobius pallidus (Olivier) | BLATTODEA | Blattellidae | (Olivier) | Ectobius | pallidus | ||
| Surinam cockroach | Pycnoscelus surinamensis (Linnaeus) | BLATTODEA | Blaberidae | (Linnaeus) | Pycnoscelus | surinamensis |