Cariblatta lutea is a small species of cockroach native to the United States and other countries, measuring usually around 7 millimeters long as an adult and under 2 millimeters from head tip to abdomen tip at the 1st instar or hatchling. It consists of two subspecies, the small yellow cockroach (Cariblatta lutea lutea), and the least yellow cockroach (Cariblatta lutea minima). The ootheca, or egg case, of C. lutea has been suggested as a possible host of an ensign wasp, Hyptia floridana. Subspecies There are two identified subspecies of Cariblatta lutea: Cariblatta lutea lutea (Saussure & Zehntner 1893) and Cariblatta lutea minima Hebard 1916. Habitat differences and the broad overlap in distribution of the two subspecies in peninsular Florida have prompted the suggestion that they may warrant recognition as distinct species. Description Cariblatta lutea lutea is a pale brownish-yellow, with a pale brown head, a band between the eyes, and usually some dark brown spots on the face. The disc of the pronotum (head shield) is usually marked with several small brownish spots, and its sides are transparent. The tegmina (leathery forewings) typically don't quite reach the apex of the abdomen. The tegmina of males are stinctly shorter than those of females, and the tips of the tegmina are rounded on females. The subgenital plate of the between the styles of the male is three times as long as it is broad. In females, the subjenital plate is large and boat-shaped with a rounded apex. Females of the subspecies tend to be larger than the males, with much shorter wings. Female body length ranges from compared to male body length from . Female pronotum length ranges from compared to male pronotum length from . Cariblatta lutea minima is on average smaller and has shorter tegmina than Cariblatta lutea lutea. Males of the C. l. minima subspecies also have shorter inner rudimentary wings, and a much narrower subgenital plate, than C. l. lutea. Males of C. l. minima are slightly smaller than females; the length of the body of males ranges from , and the length of the pronotum of males ranges from , while the body of females ranges from , and the pronotum of females ranges from . Etymology The genus Cariblatta was named after the Carib people of the Caribbean. Blatta means “an insect who shuns light” in Latin, referring to cockroaches as well as moths and other