A bed bug infestation brings a host of problems to your home or business. However, detecting bed bugs can be challenging for a number of reasons, and you may not realize that you have bed bugs until the problem becomes serious. Although bed bugs are small and can effectively hide their presence, there are a few ways you can spot the presence of bed bugs and contact a residential or commercial pest control service for bed bug removal services — before a massive infestation develops.
What Do Bed Bugs Look Like to the Human Eye?
The idea that bed bugs are too small to see with the naked eye is a myth. While it’s true that newly hatched and young bed bugs, or nymphs, are translucent and difficult to spot, bed bug nymphs take on a bright red colour when fed. Also, adult bed bugs are easily visible. Approximately the size of an apple seed, fully grown bed bugs have oval bodies that may be flat or rounded, depending on whether they have fed recently.
The challenge in visually spotting bed bugs lies in their habits. Bed bugs are nocturnal, meaning they’re only active at night, and they typically remain hidden. If you suspect the presence of bed bugs, check the cracks, crevices, and seams of your mattress and bedding, as well as seams or cracks in the headboard and footboard of beds.
What Do Bed Bug Bites Look Like?
Another potential way to diagnose a bed bug problem is with the presence of bed bug bites. Unfortunately, this is not a foolproof method, as some people do not react to bed bug bites, so the presence of bed bug may continue to go unnoticed.
Bed bug bites typically occur on areas of the skin that may be exposed during sleep, such as legs, arms, and hands, the neck and shoulder area, and the face. The most common appearance of bed bug bites is a grouping of small, raised red marks that may appear either in lines or a zig-zag pattern, although bites can appear individually. Depending on a person’s sensitivity to the anti-coagulant that bed bugs inject with their bites, the area around the bite or bites may be itchy, red, or swollen either the next day or within a few days of being bitten.
What Do Bed Bugs Look Like on a Mattress or Sheets?
The easiest way to tell that you have a bed bug infestation is by inspecting bedding for signs of bed bug activity. This can include reddish or rusty stains on the mattress or sheets, which are left by crushed bed bugs; or small, dark stains about the size of a pencil point that is left by bed bug feces.
If you believe you have a bed bug problem, contact ASAP Pest Control today to learn more about our residential pest control, commercial pest control, and bed bug removal services.