During the wintertime, everyone loves to cuddle up on soft sofas, with plush blankets, or in their warm beds. Everyone, including bed bugs. Infestations run rampant in the winter especially, so now is a great time to learn more about them, how to spot them, why they congregate in our spaces, and most importantly - what you can do about it.
What are Bed Bugs?
Bed bugs are small, brownish-red bugs famous for dwelling in beds and feeding on humans while they sleep. However, their name is a bit of a misnomer. Beds are not the only place they are found. They are also in virtually every place people tend to gather, including residences, hotels, schools, offices, retail stores and even public transportation. You will find bedbugs in many places besides just a bed, such as the cracks and crevices in walls or wood. They also like to hide behind baseboards, around mattress buttons, within bedding and inside box springs. They can even come from inside electrical switch plates, picture frames, and wallpaper.
Bed bugs feed only on blood and need regular blood meals to survive and develop. Humans are not bed bugs’ only targets, they also will attack many warm-blooded animals, including poultry and other birds. Because their bites are nearly painless, humans usually don’t notice or wake up when bitten. Bed bugs do not transmit disease, but their bites can cause red, itchy welts. These bites do not generally need professional treatment, and people who experience severe itching usually can find relief with topical steroid creams.
How to ID Bed Bugs
Identifying bed bugs is the first step for avoiding an infestation. Bed bugs are an oval shape and only grow to about 3/16th of an inch in length. Prior to feeding, they are brown and flat. After feeding, bed bugs become redder in color, swollen, and elongated. Bed bugs have 6 legs and 2 antennae. Despite having reduced “wing pads,” bed bugs do not have wings and cannot fly.
Adult bed bugs are visible to the human eye and can be detected by sight, especially within mattress seams and box springs. Bed bug nymphs can be harder to identify, as they are smaller in size and paler in color.
Where do Bed Bugs Come From?
Bed bugs are excellent at traveling well hidden. They will latch onto suitcases, boxes, shoes and other items and travel on the objects to a new home. This is why bed bugs can spread so easily. Once introduced into a new environment, they will spread throughout their new surroundings, whether it is your family home or your neighborhood restaurant. The National Pest Management Association reports that the 3 most common places where bed bugs are discovered are single-family homes apartments and condominiums, and hotels or motels.
Bed Bug Infestations
Bed bugs are very good at multiplying, and very fast at it. Females lay 1-5 eggs per day, reaching up to 541 eggs in their lifetime. It only takes about 21 days for these nymphs to become adult bed bugs. No wonder they can rapidly infest an entire household or building!
Once established, an infestation can be extremely difficult to get rid of. This is why it is so important to contact an exterminator, like Sentry Pest Control, as soon as a bed bug infestation is identified.
Bed bugs are most easily identified by small reddish-brown fecal spots on mattresses, upholstery or walls. Bites on 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 these bites to appear, during which time the infestation has had time to grow.
You can also identify a bed bug infestations by sightings of bed bug molt skins, their eggs, empty eggshells, or the bugs themselves. All of these things are small, but still visible to the human eye. Bed bug molt skins as well as their eggshells appear pale white after molting or emerging from the eggshell.
Say Good-Bye to Bed Bugs!
Bed bugs are extremely elusive pests, so seek professional help when dealing with an infestation or if you just suspect you may have a bed bug problem. You should not try to treat them on your own. Contact a reputable pest management company such as Sentry Pest Control to get full control of these nuisance pests!
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