Bed Bugs
(Cimex lectularius)
Nocturnal parasites that hide in mattresses and furniture, feeding on human blood while you sleep.
Overview
Bed bugs have made a dramatic resurgence worldwide and are increasingly common in Bowling Green homes, apartments, hotels, and even offices. They are expert hitchhikers that spread by traveling in luggage, furniture, clothing, and personal belongings. Bed bugs are nocturnal, feeding exclusively on human blood — typically while you sleep. Their bites can cause itchy welts, anxiety, and sleep loss. They do not transmit diseases, but the psychological impact of a bed bug infestation can be significant. Because they hide in tiny cracks and crevices and can go months without feeding, they are among the most difficult household pests to eliminate.
Appearance
Adult bed bugs are about 1/4 inch long — roughly the size and shape of an apple seed. They are flat and oval when unfed, becoming elongated and swollen after a blood meal. Unfed adults are brown; after feeding, they are reddish-brown and engorged. Nymphs are smaller and lighter in color — nearly translucent when newly hatched. Eggs are tiny (about 1mm), white, and pearl-shaped.
Habitat
Bed bugs hide in cracks, crevices, and folds close to where people sleep or sit for extended periods. Common hiding spots include mattress seams and tufts, box spring frames and staple points, headboard joints, nightstand drawers, baseboards near the bed, behind electrical outlet covers, and in the folds of upholstered furniture. They typically stay within 8 feet of their host's sleeping or resting area.
Diet
Bed bugs are obligate blood feeders that feed exclusively on human blood (though they can feed on other warm-blooded animals in the absence of humans). They typically feed for 5 to 10 minutes, usually between 2 AM and 5 AM. They inject an anesthetic and anticoagulant during feeding, so bites are usually painless until a reaction develops hours later. After feeding, they retreat to their hiding spots to digest.
Lifecycle
Females lay 1 to 5 eggs per day and 200 to 500 in a lifetime. Eggs hatch in about 6 to 10 days. Nymphs must take a blood meal between each of their 5 molts. Development from egg to adult takes about 5 to 8 weeks under favorable conditions. Adults can survive 2 to 6 months without feeding (and up to a year in cool conditions), which is why they can persist in vacant rooms and furniture.
Signs of Infestation
- !Itchy, red bite marks often in clusters or lines on exposed skin (face, neck, arms, hands)
- !Small, dark reddish-brown spots (fecal stains) on mattress seams, sheets, and pillowcases
- !Tiny blood smears on sheets from crushed bugs
- !Live bugs, shed skins, or tiny white eggs in mattress seams, bed frame joints, and nightstand crevices
- !A sweet, musty odor in heavily infested rooms
Prevention Tips
- ✓Inspect hotel rooms before settling in — check mattress seams, headboards, and nightstand drawers
- ✓Keep luggage on hard surfaces (luggage racks) rather than on beds or carpeted floors when traveling
- ✓Inspect and vacuum used furniture thoroughly before bringing it into the home
- ✓Encase mattresses and box springs in bed bug-proof encasements
- ✓Reduce clutter around and under beds to minimize hiding spots
- ✓When returning from travel, wash and dry all clothing on high heat and inspect luggage carefully
Professional Treatment
Professional bed bug treatment typically involves a combination of methods. Thorough inspection identifies all harborage areas. Targeted liquid and dust treatments are applied to cracks, crevices, and known hiding spots. Heat treatment (raising room temperature to 120-140°F) is highly effective at killing all life stages in a single treatment. Mattress and box spring encasements trap remaining bugs. Follow-up inspections at 2- and 4-week intervals confirm elimination. DIY treatments are generally ineffective against bed bugs due to their cryptic hiding behavior and resistance to many over-the-counter products.
Did You Know?
- •Bed bugs can survive up to a year without a blood meal in cool conditions.
- •They have been found in the tombs of ancient Egyptians dating back 3,500 years.
- •A single female can produce over 500 offspring in her lifetime.
- •They are attracted to the carbon dioxide we exhale and the warmth of our bodies.
1/4 inch (adults, about the size of an apple seed)
Reddish-brown (fed); flat and translucent-brown (unfed)
6
Flat, oval, apple-seed-sized
Chinch, Wall louse, Mahogany flat
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