If you have no experience with bed bugs, you need to know that they are tiny, oval, brown-colored insects that live by sucking the blood of humans or animals. The adults have a flat shape which is similar to that of an apple seed. Once they feed on human blood, they swell in size and become reddish in color. While these bugs can’t fly, they are rapid in their movement over walls, floors, or ceilings.
Over its lifetime, a female bed bug can lay hundreds of eggs, whose size might be equal to the dust particles. The not-fully-grown bed bugs are known as nymphs and they shed their main skin 5 times before they ultimately become mature. They too need one meal of blood before they shed their skin. Check out this Longview bed bug control service if you’re striving to control the intrusion of these insects in your home.
Where do these bed bugs hide?
These distasteful insects called bed bugs enter undetected, sometimes through clothing, luggage, couches, and used beds. With the help of flat bodies, they can fit into any space and this makes it easier to enter even the tiniest of spaces without your notice. Unlike other insects, bedbugs don’t have nests but they live in groups in places that can’t be seen by the naked eye. Initially, they hide in mattresses, frames of beds, box springs, and headboards through which they can get access to humans to bite at night.
With time, they move through the bedroom and rest at safe places. They can even spread to other apartments or rooms. Since these insects live only in the blood of animals and humans, when you have them in your home, this is a sign of untidiness. Even when you visit filthy homes or hotel rooms, you’ll find them hovering around.
When do bed bugs get active?
Usually, bedbugs get active at night as they usually bite people when they’re fast asleep. They feed on human blood by biting on to the skin and sucking blood with the help of their long beak. They feed for about 3-10 minutes and after that time, they get enlarged with the blood that they suck. Soon after, they move away.
Bedbug bites are initially painless but after some time, they turn itchy and swell up. Bites of bed bugs can be in any area of your skin and they are exposed during sleeping. Bed bug bites don’t have any red spots like flea bites.
What are the signs of being infested with bedbugs?
Did you just wake up with itching areas in your skin which were not there when you went to bed last night? If yes, these might be the result of bedbugs. This is even more common when you get a used bed or furniture. Few other signs which show that your bed was infested by bedbugs are:
- Stains of blood on your pillow cover or bed sheets
- Rusty or dark spots of bedbug excreta on mattresses, sheets, walls and bed clothes
- A musty and bad odor that comes from the scent glands of the bugs
- Bed bug egg shells, fecal spots or skin that they shed off at places where they hide
Whenever you’re doubtful about an infestation, discard all bedding and watch out for signs of bug’s excreta. Don’t forget to check the area outside the bed like radios, telephones, books, electrical outlets and the edge of carpet. Also check your cupboard as they often get attached to clothes. When you’re sure about signs of bedbugs, call a pest control service who can look after the matter.
