Adult Female Bed Bug (enlarged)

Bed bug bites are usually the early warning sign of a bed bug infestation. Bed bugs feed only on blood. Each life stage feeds, except the egg. Allergic reactions vary widely from practically no reaction to small itchy red or white bumps, to blisters or pustules. Not every person in a residence will react the same way and many times only one person will show signs of bites, leading others to believe it cannot be bed bugs. If you someone you now has bites, consider the following:

• Bed bugs tend to feed on exposed skin, but can feed under loose clothing.
• Bed bugs primarily feed at night in the dark, in a typical situation. Under stressed conditions bed bugs can feed during the day.
  

  Adult Male Bed Bug (enlarged)

• Bed bug bite reactions can take a few minutes to as many as 14 days to appear.

• Bed bugs do not transmit diseases but can cause discomfort in affected individuals.

If left untreated, bed bug infestations will just get worse. Bed bugs will travel on clothing or personal items, so if you do not treat your home and remove the infestation, you may cause the spread of these annoying bugs.

Meet Clegg’s Bed Bug Dogs

Clegg’s has acquired trained bed bug dogs whose job is to sniff out bed bugs in homes and businesses so that our trained pest professionals can treat the infestation. Learn more about Smoke and Rambo.

Bed Bug Lifecycle

Adults and all nymphal stages need to take blood meals from warm-blooded hosts, which are typically humans although other mammals and birds can be utilized in the absence of a human host. Female bed bugs lay about five eggs daily throughout their adult lives in a sheltered location (mattress seams, crevices in box springs, spaces under baseboards, etc). Eggs hatch in about 4-12 days into first instar nymphs which must take a blood meal before molting to the next stage. The bugs will undergo five nymphal stages, each one requiring a blood meal before molting to the next stage, with the fifth stage molting into an adult.

Nymphs, resemble smaller versions of adults. Nymphs and adults take about 5-10 minutes to obtain a full blood meal. The adults may take several blood meals over several weeks, assuming a warm-blooded host is available. Mating occurs off the host. Adults live 6-18 months and may survive for long periods of time without feeding.

If you think you have bed bugs, contact Clegg’s today to see how we can help eliminate the infestation.