What are Bed Bugs?
Bed bugs are small insects with a brownish color and an oval shape that live on human blood. The adult bed bugs have flat bodies but the body swells when they feed and they become reddish in color. Bed bugs are crawling insects that do not fly and can move very fast on walls, ceilings, and floors.
For more than 3,000 years dating back to ancient Egypt, bed bugs have been an issue. Bed Bug, C. Lecturlarius, has been believed to originate from the Middle East in caves where humans and bats lived. Research and studies have shown that bed bugs used to be parasites to bats before moving to humans. Archaeological studies also showed that Bed bugs used to be used for curing common ailments.
Bed Bugs got their name from its habit of feeding on humans while asleep in their beds. They have also been called wall-lice, red coates and mahogany flats.
Bed bugs were first brought to the United States by the colonist and they lived with humans in the United States for decades. However, as of 1950, with the use of DDT Bed Bugs were nearly eradicated. DDT was a very commonly used pesticide used in the 1900s. It was banned in 1972 due to its environmental effects. Bed bugs made a come-back after DDT was banned. There was a lack of public awareness and increase in international travel which also contributed to their come back. Today we are having more and more infestations then ever in history.
How to identify
- The first thing you need to understand is their typical hiding place. After coming into your home undetected through clothing, used beds, couches luggage and other items, they find their way to their initial hiding place which includes your mattress, bed frames, headboards and box springs. Over time, they begin to move through all the rooms in the house.
- It is important to know that bed bugs are active at night and they feed on human while they are sleeping. The way they feed is piercing and sucking. They pierce the skin and suck blood through their mouth piece.
- The average time it takes them to feed to engorgement is three to ten minutes before they crawl away unnoticed.
- The bites are most time painless at first but will result in itchy welts.
Signs that you have bed bugs in your home
- Waking up with itchy areas after you have slept on a piece of furniture or bed
- Blood stains on your pillowcases or bed sheets.
- Dark or rusty spots, bed bug excrement, on your bedclothes, mattress, walls or sheets.
- Skin Shells, eggs or fecal spots in any of the hiding places mentioned earlier.
If you suspect any of the aforementioned signs, call us right away for an inspection and treatment instructions.
