Your Guide to the Standard Life of Bed Bugs
When a bed bug enters a new home, a whole new world of possibilities is available to it. With endless options of furniture and mattresses to reproduce in, the bed bug finds a cozy crevice to start it’s new colony.
The bed bug will then lay some eggs where the new bed bug life cycle begins. Bed bugs reproduce faster than a bed bugs lifespan, so you shouldn’t just expect these pests to die off. In fact, the problem should be addressed immediately before it gets out of hand.
Different Stages of The Bed Bug Life Cycle
To understand these bugs, it’s important to know about the bed bug life cycle. A bed bug has precisely 3 stages in their life. They start as eggs and develop into adults by feeding on blood. They can take about 37 days to reach the stage of an adult and the process could be quicker depending on the conditions for their survival.
Egg Stage
An egg is the first stage of a bed bug. These eggs are as tiny as a grain and they are usually white. The females can easily lay five eggs at the most in one single day. However, they are capable of laying as many as 500 of them in their entire lifetime. They may lay these eggs in clusters or even individually. You can find bed bug eggs in cracks and tightly closed crevices. The eggs measure only about a millimeter and hatch in nearly two weeks or so.
Nymph Stage
Young bed bugs are referred to as nymphs. Nymphs have to molt about five times in order to develop into adults. Nymphs are smaller versions of adults and have not acquired sexual maturity. The younger nymphs are yellowish-white colored while the slightly older ones are red or brown by feeding on blood. To molt, these bugs have to have a meal of blood and need five weeks to reach the stage of an adult. They are just one and a half millimeters long and gradually grow in length.
Adult Stage
After five weeks of molting and feeding on blood, these nymphs finally turn into adult bed bugs. On reaching this stage, it is observed that the bugs feed on a weekly basis. They can survive up to 6 months at the most. Depending on the living conditions, this period may even extend.
What’s the Bed Bug Life Span?
Bed bugs can live for a minimum of 4-6 months and a maximum of a year. However, at an average, bed bugs survive for 10 whole months. With suitable conditions, an egg can change into an adult within 37 days while a warmer weather can fasten the entire process. The life cycle of bed bugs isn’t very long either and they are known to mate aggressively.
Where Do Bed Bugs Live?
To know whether your house is infested or not, it is important to have visual proof of bed bugs. Several times people mistake bites to be the work of mosquitoes while they are actually done by bed bugs. A lot of bugs bite similarly so it is crucial for you to check for bed bugs.
But where would you find them? Since they are nocturnal, you’re most likely to spot them at night which makes looking for them in the day really hard. They like to stay close to humans even when they are hiding. Owing to their flat bodies, you are likely to find them lodged between wall or door cracks or crevices.
Another place worth checking when on the lookout for bed bugs are your box springs and mattresses. This acts as one of the best spots for them to hide as it makes it easier for them to bite people at night. You should also check old luggage or furniture including headboards at your house. You can look for them around loose wallpaper or behind pictures.
If you spot blood stains or spots on your sheets, then this may indicate the presence of bed bugs in your house. They also leave their fecal matter on your sheets at times. Nymphs may drop their skin while molting around your house.
A good way to avoid infestation is to check your luggage before returning from a trip. At times, hotels are infested with bedbugs and they may hitchhike their way home.
What Do Bed Bugs Eat?
It is common knowledge that bed bugs like feasting on human blood. However, they also prefer drinking the blood from mammals like bats. Many different varieties of bed bugs feed on blood and they always prefer mammals. Few of them require specific mammals to have the capability to reproduce. If they don’t have their preferences available to them, then they might as well feast on the blood of any mammal.
Since their habits differ, you should ensure you recognize them properly and classify the right type of bed bug. If you notice any bat bugs at home, you should look at places where bats may be nesting.
It’s obvious that the best item for a bed bug’s meal is your blood. To avoid the annoyance that they cause, you may have to contact a pest control company to take over.
There are several types of bed bugs but the common bed bug the feeds on human blood is the Cimex Lectularius. It is an important step to know about the bugs you are having to deal with while trying to get rid of them. Before you contact the local pest control company, you might want to make sure that you are in fact dealing with bed bugs.
Also if the infestation is extremely serious, then do-it-yourself measures will not help. Reducing clutter is one of the steps to the easy discovery of bed bugs. Places with a lot of clutter give them plenty of room to hide.
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References:
1. https://www.orkin.com/other/bed-bugs/bedbug-life-stages/