Bedbug Size And Identification: Curious Facts On Your Mattress Pests

Knowing adult bed bug size will help you identify whether the infestation in your mattress is really from bed bugs.

Bed bug infestation is a serious concern in many households. Learn with us how to identify bed bugs and get rid of them permanently.

Bed bugs are very strongly hated in households. These pests infest mattresses, furniture, clothes, bags, old luggage. They hide in the folds during the day and come out at nighttime.

Bed bugs survive on blood meals. They crawl in the beds of people and suck blood from their bodies.

People panic even with the sight of a single bed bug. Spotting an individual bed bug does not always mean there’s a full-blown infestation. You should check the surrounding area of the location where you spot the bed bug.

If you do not find another one, the chances are they have not infested your place yet. Make sure to do a quick cleaning of that area to avoid an infestation in the future.

Bed bugs multiply quite quickly. Researchers estimate that with the availability of constant food sources, bed bugs can raise a family of 1,200 - 1,600-bed bugs, within a short span of 90 days. After reading all about the adult bed bug size, do check Wheel Bug Facts and bees nest.

What is the size of a baby bedbug?

All of us wonder how big are bed bugs? The first step in identifying bed bugs is knowing what they look like. Female bed bugs lay eggs every couple of weeks.

The actual size of bed bug eggs is around one millimeter. Females lay eggs in secluded areas which are small and not easily reachable. Bed bugs are one of those pests that multiply very quickly. The bed bug eggs are white in color.

The hatchlings of these eggs are also white at birth. Just hatched baby bed bugs are called nymphs. Nymphs start feeding on blood and grow into adult bed bugs in a matter of weeks.

Nymphs are almost the size of their eggs. The bed bug eggs are the size of an apple seed. Their actual size is one to two millimeter.

The size of the just-hatched nymphs is almost similar to the size of the eggs. The baby bed bug size is very small.

That is why it is not possible to spot them easily. Their white color makes the task more difficult. But adult bed bugs are larger in size.

Bed bugs are reddish-brown in color. Owing to the brown color and bigger size, one can see adult bed bugs with their naked eye. All the bed bugs, adults or babies, have the same body shape.

Any bed bug has an oval-shaped body. Baby bed bugs start growing in size once they feed for the first time. Baby bed bugs, just like adults, feed on blood.

They require only 5-6 feeding rounds to turn into adult bed bugs. It is often observed that the oval-shaped bodies of bed bugs get engorged once they have fed.

Since baby bed bugs are very small in size, it is difficult to detect them on mattresses and furniture, especially if your furniture and mattresses are white in color. If you ever spot a baby bed bug in your house, you should take it as a sign of infestation.

Because baby bed bugs mean there are adult bed bugs laying eggs.

What bugs are mistaken for bed bugs?

Bed bugs look identical to a number of insects. The lifestyle of bed bugs is not though. They require to feed on blood which most bugs looking like them do not. There are certain characteristics that will help you identify bed bugs and differentiate them from other bugs that look like them.

Bed bugs are reddish-brown in color. They do not have any segments on the body. Their bodies are flat.

They get engorged when they are full with their blood meal. They have oval-shaped bodies. Their legs are usually hidden below their bodies. These pests are not life-threatening but should be correctly identified to get rid of.

Bed bugs look similar to many insects that feed on a blood meal. If you know how to identify bed bugs then it won't be a problem for you.

Adult bed bugs are reddish-brown in color. But many bugs have a similar color.

These pests do not have segmented bodies. The legs of bed bugs are tucked below their body, apart from the first two pairs.

If you catch a bug having a blood meal, it is most probable that it is a bed bug.

Some bugs and insects that look like bed bugs are bat bugs, cockroach nymphs, booklice, ticks, spider beetles, swallow bugs, fleas, head lice, carpet beetles, termites, mites. These bugs and insects are often mistaken to be bed bugs and vice versa.

While differentiating between different types of bugs, physical characteristics such as the presence of hair, location of hair, presence or absence of wings, shape, antenna, color, segmentation, size, the shape of the head, color patterns are important. If you carefully consider all these characteristics you will not be confused between bed bugs and other bugs.

Can you feel bed bugs crawling?

Bed bugs are one of the nastiest insects to get rid of. They will take shelter in anything that will hide them from the light during the daytime.

These pests make a meal out of your blood every night. They generally hide in small spaces during the day.

That is why you don't see them or feel them crawling at this time. But as the night falls and you get ready for bed, you can see bed bugs with your naked eyes.

You will notice that they start crawling in your bed around the time you go to sleep. They have a sense of detecting food which helps them decide precisely when to move out of hiding and feed on a blood meal.

Adult bed bugs are the ones who cause those red bites on your skin. Nymphs, as well as adults, require blood meals to keep alive.

Bed bug bites humans to get the required supply of blood. The flat oval body of a bed bug is easily recognizable.

But as mentioned earlier, they can be confused for other insects and bugs. The size, shape, and weight of bed bugs are quite small.

You will hardly feel their weight even if they are on your body. They crawl very lightly, in a way you will never notice their legs move. The bites of bed bugs have an anesthetic nature.

That is why even after getting bitten you will not notice the bite unless it swells and start getting itchy. Given their small size and lightweight, people usually do not feel the bed bugs crawling on their skin or on their bed.

The fact that you do not feel them crawling does not mean they are not present. These are sneaky little pests that will make your life miserable.

Keep on the lookout for signs of bed bugs infestation such as a musty smell, unexplained red bites on your skin, and blood marks on your sheets. Take necessary measures to get rid of bed bugs before they become a nuisance.

How do you identify bed bugs?

Identification of bed bugs is the first step in completely getting rid of them. As we have discussed earlier, bed bugs look similar to a number of insects. To know exactly which insects have infested your house, identification is necessary.

Some insects have a shorter life cycle, this creates identification difficult as they keep on vanishing and reappearing at frequent intervals. But that is not the case with bed bugs.

If the insects in your house are really bed bugs, you will be seeing a lot of them every day. Let’s learn the signs and marks of bed bugs. These simple visual identification marks will let you identify bed bugs.

Bed bug eggs are very small in size. They do not exceed the length of one millimeter. They are white in color and can be easily noticed by the naked eye.

If the bed bugs have laid eggs on your mattress and you have white-colored sheets, then it might be difficult to spot their eggs. Adult bed bugs are bigger in size as compared to eggs. They are approximately the size of an apple seed.

Bed bugs are reddish-brown in color, which most people identify as a dark brown color. Bed bugs have an elongated body type. Their bodies are shaped like an oval.

Their bodies taper towards the front and the end to form a fine point. Their first two pairs of legs are visible protruding from the side of their body.

Bed bugs have wings. They are an important part of their body. But despite having wings it has been observed that bed bugs cannot fly.

The presence of bed bugs gives a musty smell to your mattress. Because bed bugs themselves have a kind of musty smell that sticks around. Bed bugs rely on blood meals for nutrition.

So you are most likely to find them in places where they will get a fresh supply of blood. They feed on blood and get engorged. It is also an identification mark for bed bugs.

Bed bugs lay and hatch eggs very frequently. They can double their numbers in just a few weeks. Bed bug infestation is a serious concern for many.

Having bed bugs not only destroys the things they have taken shelter in but also puts our health in danger. Bed bug bites are not that harmful, but frequent bites can become a cause for concern.

Not to mention the sleep people lose because bed bugs decided to crawl in their beds and bite. Getting rid of these pests becomes a necessity. You will find that it is not easy to get rid of bed bugs.

Bed bug infestation should be removed as soon as spotted. Female bed bugs lay and hatch eggs at an alarming rate.

Once the life cycle of bed bugs advances in later stages it becomes absolutely difficult to get rid of the infestation. Adult bed bugs bites are irritating hence you can use the following methods to get rid of bed bugs. The first step in getting rid of bed bugs is identifying them.

Use above mentioned signs to identify whether the infestation in your home is caused by bed bugs or not. Getting rid of bed bugs is a tough job.

You can start by throwing away as many infested things as possible. If it is not possible to throw away certain things, put them in the dryer at the highest heat setting. Heat is known to kill bed bugs.

You should thoroughly vacuum all the infected areas with the help of a high-powered vacuum machine. Vacuuming will not kill them all but will get rid of most of the infestation.

If you have access to a heat-generating device, use it in the infested areas. Heat treatments by professional services generally take around eight hours. It is not advisable to use heat treatment in cars and areas having electronic devices.

You can use the traditional method of pesticides to kill them. This method is slow working hence will require a lot of patience on your side.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy!

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