[blueash]

Everything you want to know about the ecology of the Florida woods cockroach, AKA palmetto bug
http://entnemdept.ifas.ufl.edu/creatures/urban/roaches/florida_woods_cockroach.htm
Nice photos and this description of their preferred habitat
The Florida woods cockroach feeds primarily on decomposing plant matter and is effectively a detritivore. Reasonable food sources could include dead or dying plant matter such as leaves and bark, as well as lichens, mosses, molds, soil microbes and mycoflora that would be encountered easily in damp dark environments (Bell et al. 2007). Because of these feeding habits, the species does not generally benefit from invading urban dwellings. However, these food sources may be present in nearby areas such as tree lines, decaying logs, under dense leaf litter, compost piles and other suitable locations.


This species tends to reside in stable sheltered areas. In populations outside of peridomestic scenarios, common habitations would include the cavities in trees or stumps, under tree bark, limestone cavities, leaf litter and densely shaded shrubs (Friauf 1953, Young and Cantrall 1958, Smith & Whitman 1992, Robinson 2005). In peridomestic environments, habitations can include holes in signs, around the base of ornamental trees such as coconut and palm, woodpiles and other shaded areas (Brenner and Pierce 1991, Young and Cantrall 1958, and Smith & Whitman 1992).