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Bed bug species
Bed bugs (Cimex lectularius) are nocturnal parasitic bugs that feed on blood from warm blooded mammals.
Bed bugs
(Cimex lectularius)
Appearance
- Bed bugs are around 5 to 6mm long before a blood meal extending to about 7mm when fully engorged.
- Oval and flattened from back to underside with thick, well-developed legs. Bed bugs do not have wings.
- Their mouths are pointed for piercing and sucking.
- Adult bed bugs are rusty red-brown in color.
- Eggs are whitish cream, getting darker as they hatch to larvae.
- Their shed skins are lighter brown and look like flaky exoskeletons.
Lifecycle
- Bed bugs lay 200 – 500 eggs over a 2 month period in batches of 10 to 50.
- The adult female must have a blood meal before egg-laying.
- The eggs are usually laid in crack and crevices and can be attached to items of furniture or fittings in clusters by a transparent substance.
- There are 7 stages to the lifecycle from egg to fully grown adult which can be from 45 days but may be up to a year.
- The typical lifespan of a bed bug is about 50 days to over a year depending on favourable conditions.
- They can survive for weeks to months without feeding.
Habits
- Bed bugs feed on human blood and are attracted to body heat and CO2 from sleeping humans.
- They inject an anaesthetic when they pierce the skin, so the bite can go unnoticed at first.
- They are found in cracks and crevices, headboards, behind peeling wallpaper, broken plaster, light switches, under carpets and skirting boards etc. so they are near to people for feeding.
- Bed bugs usually visit their host for a blood feed just before dawn. When alarmed the