All the bed bug information you need in one handy spot.
Adult bed bugs are broadly flattened, oval insects with very small wing pads. Before feeding, bed bugs are brown and about the size of an apple seed. After feeding (on you!) they are often swollen and red from the blood they have ingested. The nymphs are almost clear in color and very difficult to spot. Blood smears and fecal stains on sheets and mattresses, though, are easy to spot.
These elusive pests can be found nearly anywhere inside a home, car, bus, or other shelter. In hotels, the most common place to find bed bugs is within the backside of headboards that are mounted on walls. Bed bugs can be found in any location where humans congregate and spend extended time. Bed bugs are excellent at traveling well hidden. They will latch onto suitcases, boxes, shoes, pant legs, and other items and travel on the objects to a new home. Once introduced into a new environment, they will spread throughout their new surroundings, whether it be a large building or a single-family home.
Bed bugs don’t transmit disease, but their bites can cause red, itchy welts. These bites do not need professional treatment, and people who experience severe itching usually can find relief with topical, over the counter itch creams. You can get a steroid cream from your doctor if you’re particularly sensitive to bed bug bites.
Although bed bugs can dine on many warm-blooded animals, they prefer to feed on humans. Because their bites are nearly painless, you may not notice or even wake up when bitten. That allows them to multiply before you realize you have them. Bed bugs don’t transmit disease, but their bites can cause red, itchy welts.
Bed bugs are most easily identified by small reddish-brown fecal spots on mattresses, upholstery, or walls. If these spots are found, it can indicate an infestation. Bites on the arms and legs are also a tell-tale sign of bed bugs. While these bites can be small, if they swell and become itchy, they are noticeable. It can take two to three days for bed bug bites to appear, allowing the infestation to grow. Infestations can also be identified by sightings of bed bug molt skins, their eggs, empty eggshells, or the bugs themselves. All these things are quite small, but still visible to the human eye and certainly easier to spot by the trained eye. Both bed bug’s molted skins and their eggshells appear pale white after molting or emerging from the eggshell.
Besides being excellent hiders, bed bugs are also excellent hitchhikers. They will get into bags and luggage – including backpacks and purses – to make their way into your home. Since they are attracted to blood, they will do anything they can to get in where there is a blood meal. And bed bugs don’t have anything to do with cleanliness. They aren’t attracted to dirt or grease. So, you could easily have brought them home from a nice hotel or even a library or theater.
Besides being excellent hiders, bed bugs are also excellent hitchhikers. They will get into bags and luggage – including backpacks and purses – to make their way into your home. Since they are attracted to blood, they will do anything they can to get in where there is a blood meal. And bed bugs don’t have anything to do with cleanliness. They aren’t attracted to dirt or grease. So, you could easily have brought them home from a nice hotel or even a library or theater. Since bed bugs excel at hiding, you mostly see the bites before you actually see the bug. They can hide in the seams of chairs and couches, between cushions, in the folds of curtains. They can also hide in drawer joints, in electrical receptacles and appliances, and even under loose wallpaper and pictures on the wall. They can hide in the head of a screw so it’s not surprising that they can also hide in your bed.
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