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Bed-bugs occur nearly worldwide. Bed bugs became relatively
scarce during the latter part of the 40th century, but their
populations have resurged in recent years, particularly throughout
parts of North America, Europe, and Australia. Bedbugs
are wingless insect have a flat, oval-shaped body, cannot
fly, and are 4-7 mm long and as such move arond by crawling
or riding from place to place in clothing, luggage or other
such transport. Distribution can be further exacerbated in
places such as theatres and public transport, with infestations
frequently occurring in hotels and other buildings where there
is a high density and turnover of individuals. Their colour
is shiny reddish-brown but after a blood-meal they become
swollen and dark reddish brown in colour.
There are three stages in the bedbug?s life cycle: egg, nymph
and adult. The female lays her eggs in batches of 10 to 50,
they are white in colour and deposited on various surfaces
with a thin glue. The eggs are white and about 1 mm long.
The nymphs look like adults but are smaller. Female bedbugs
lay about 200 to 500 eggs in their lifetime. Under ideal conditions,
eggs hatch in about seven days and the nymphs molt five times,
taking a blood meal between each molt.
Complete development from egg to adult takes from six weeks
to several months. Both male and female bedbug
feeds principally on human blood by piercing the skin with
a long beak and sucking blood into their stomachs. They feed
mostly at night, but will feed during the day if hungry and
the light is dim. Feeding takes about 5-8 minutes for adults,
less for nymphs, and is repeated about every three days. By
day they hide in dark, dry places in beds, mattresses, cracks
in walls and floors, and furniture; they are also found behind
pictures and wallpaper; hiding places are also used for breeding.
Adults can survive for several years without food.
Symptoms of a bedbug bite include large wheals, itichness,
reddining of the skin, localized swelling. Bedbugs
are not known to transmit any infectious agents. Contact us
for professional management options.
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