Intro to bed bugs
Sources, signs, and mechanics of
infestation
Biology and feeding habits
Prevention and treatment
Bed
bugs, which are wingless, parasitic
insects, have made a huge comeback in
recent years. With the development of
DDT, they were virtually eliminated and
almost nonexistent until the mid-90s,
when pest-control companies began
baiting (rather than spraying) for
cockroaches and ants. As a result of
this change in technique, bed bugs were
no longer being killed along with
roaches and ants. At the same time,
immigrants from third-world countries,
where resistant strains of bed bugs have
developed, started carrying them into
major metropolitan areas. In
Massachusetts, the Allston-Brighton area
of Boston has been particularly
affected.
Thought to have originated in the Middle
East, bed bugs afflict humans, bats and
birds. In their non-blood-engorged
state, they measure 1/5th inch long by
1/8th of an inch wide. They are
oval-shaped and have flattened bodies.
Bed bugs can invade structures by being
carried into them on clothes, furniture,
suitcases, and personal items.
Unfortunately, no structure frequented
by people is immune from infestation.
This includes motels, homes, apartments,
condos, movie theatres, and airports,
among many other types of buildings.
How can you tell if an infestation is
present? Because bed bugs are both
nocturnal and small, they aren't usually
seen during the day. Many people know
when they wake up with itchy swellings
on their arms and shoulders. However,
some people are not allergic or
sensitive to bed bug bites and thus do
not experience itching. Other visible
clues of infestation are bloodstain
smears on beds (most common areas),
walls, curtains, and other furniture.
Also, brown and black stains from
excrement are sometimes observed on
surfaces as well, as are egg shells.
When infestations are particularly bad,
a sweet smell is present.
When first in a structure, bed bugs are
found most often in the seams, tufts,
and folds of mattresses and daybeds.
From there, they spread out and onto bed
frames, baseboards, window and door
casings, pictures, furniture, loosened
wallpaper, and other darks cracks and
crevices.
Bed bugs are prolific breeders. An
interesting aspect of their biology is
that males can fertilize multiple
females within a period of 24 hours.
After a female is fertilized, she can
lay up to 5 eggs per day by gluing them
to surfaces with her own excretions. The
eggs then hatch in 6 to 10 days under
warm conditions, and longer if it is
cool. Bed bugs can live from 6 months to
1 ½ years. Females are able to lay a
total of 200 eggs in their lifetimes.
Bed bugs require meals of blood to
survive. Young bed bugs, or nymphs, take
3 minutes of feeding to become fully
engorged, while adults take 15 minutes
to do the same. In the absence of food,
bed bugs can live for several hundred
days, making them hardy creatures.
Although preventative measures can be
taken for bed bugs, infestations require
prompt treatment. Often times, bed bugs
spread quickly and thoroughly through
apartment buildings, thereby driving up
the long-term cost of pest control.
To prevent bed bugs, you can do the
following:
Wash bedding and mattress pads,
Steam-clean mattresses
Clean furnishings
Remove debris from around the house
Repair cracks in walls
Caulk windows and doors
Coat legs of beds with petroleum jelly
and double-sided tape to prevent bed
bugs from climbing
Put legs of the bed frame in empty cans
or glass jars to create unclimbable
vertical surfaces
Do not pick mattresses and furniture
out of the trash in metropolitan areas
and be wary of yard sales and other
sources of used goods
If you do have an infestation, bed bug
treatment requires at least three
applications at 1-month intervals because
of their life cycle. The first treatment
kills the existing nymphs and adults,
while the subsequent treatments kill
newly hatched nymphs and no-longer
dormant adults.
Bed bug bites, although a severe
annoyance, do not pose disease risks.
Applying antiseptic soap to prevent
infection and icepacks to relieve
swelling are ways to cope with them. If
an infection develops, see your
healthcare provider.
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