Bed bug
Bed bugs, scientifically classified under the genus Cimex and species lectularius, are small, nocturnal insects that have coexisted with humans for centuries. These pests are known for their ability to emerge from hiding places during the night to feed on the blood of sleeping individuals, leaving bite marks that resemble those from mosquito bites. Bed bugs thrive in dark, warm environments, often found in areas such as behind loose wallpaper, within cracks in furniture, or inside wooden bed frames. Adult bed bugs are roughly five to seven millimeters long, with a broad, flattened brown body that swells after feeding.
Despite their small size, female bed bugs are capable of laying nearly 100 eggs over a lifespan of 12 to 18 months, with young nymphs resembling adults and maturing in just a few weeks if conditions are favorable. Their resurgence in the twenty-first century has drawn attention as they once significantly declined due to widespread pesticide use. Effective control methods include insecticides and improving living conditions to limit their habitat. While bed bugs are not considered a threatened species, their presence can be a nuisance, prompting the familiar adage, "Good night, sleep tight, and don't let the bed bugs bite."
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Bedbug
Bed bugs have existed for centuries and occur throughout the globe. The bed bug is known around the world for its nasty habit of coming out at night from woodwork, wallpaper, and other hiding places to bite sleeping people. It then sucks the blood and leaves a mark similar to that of a mosquito bite.
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hemiptera
Family: Cimicidae
Genus: Cimex
Species: Lectularius
"Sleep tight, and don't let the bed bugs bite!" People have said this to each other for years, and they have had good reason for saying it.
The bed bug has been around for centuries and over the years has become known as a blood-sucking pest to people around the world. It appears nearly everywhere that people live, most commonly in temperate regions. The bed bug avoids light and is nocturnal, or active at night. It lives in dark, warm, sheltered places, such as behind loose wallpaper, inside cracks in plaster and woodwork, inside old furniture, rugs, and wooden bedframes. Some people used to buy brass bedframes, thinking that they would provide fewer places for bed bugs to hide.
The female of this species is slightly larger than the male and both are about five to seven millimeters (1/2 centimeter) long. The bed bug has a broad, flattened, brown body which swells and becomes purple as the insect feeds. Tiny hairs cover the body. The two small wings are not large enough to lift the bed bug into the air. It relies on its six legs to crawl between its home and where it feeds at night.
From the front of the bed bug extends a tiny, slender mouthpart for piercing and sucking. It is hollow like the needle of a syringe. The warmth of a sleeping human body in a dark room and the carbon dioxide which the person exhales both attract the bed bug and lead it to its nightly meal. Because the bed bug's mouthpart is so small, the person does not feel the bite. A pregnant female bed bug may drink five times her body weight in blood in five to 10 minutes. As the bed bug crawls away, it usually leaves a bite mark similar to that of a mosquito, although some people may not have bites. A bed bug may live for several weeks without feeding. The best way to control this pest is with insecticides and improved living conditions.
Although it feeds alone, the bed bug lives with several other bed bugs. Mating occurs year round indoors and during the summer outside. A female may lay one egg a day for up to 13 weeks, which means a total of nearly 100 eggs. She glues the eggs into crevices where she lives. In warm conditions, the eggs hatch in four or five days, but they may not hatch for up to three months. The nymphs, or young, look like adults and molt, or shed, their skins five times before they are fully grown. If food is plentiful, the nymphs become adults in three to eight weeks. The average life span of the bed bug is between 12 and 18 months, but it is possible for it to lie dormant for several months during freezing temperatures. When it becomes warm again, the bed bug thaws and looks for another meal.
When someone wishes another person "Good night, sleep tight, and don't let the bed bugs bite," he or she is hoping the person sleeps well and does not wake up with any bites from this insect.
In the mid-twentieth century, bed bug populations began to decline because of the heavy use of pesticides, although bed bugs have once again become widespread in the twenty-first century. Bed bugs are not a threatened species.
Bibliography
“Introduction to Bed Bugs.” Environmental Protection Agency, 5 Oct. 2023, www.epa.gov/bedbugs/introduction-bed-bugs. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.
Ross, Heather. “Bed Bugs Insect Facts - Cimex Lectularius.” A-Z Animals, 24 Mar. 2023, a-z-animals.com/animals/bed-bugs. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.