How To Tell If It Is Bed Bugs In Your Tupelo Home

There are many who believe that bed bugs are invisible to the naked eye. While they're certainly small, they can easily be seen without magnification. A baby bed bug starts life at about 1mm long and grows into an adult that is about 4.5 mm (that's about the size of an apple seed). So, why do people think these insects are invisible? Because they are incredibly adept at hiding. If you want to tell if you have bed bugs in your Tupelo home, you need to know more than how to identify a bed bug. That's where we are going to start this quick guide. Here's what you need to know.

Bed Bug Identification

If you lift a mattress, you might see bed bugs. They can establish themselves in the compressed area between a mattress and a box spring. If you move a couch cushion, you might find bed bugs tucked into a fold in the frame of the couch just underneath the cushion. There are many ways you might uncover bed bugs by accident. If you do, look for these identifying characteristics:

• All bed bugs have six legs, two antennae, three body parts, and skin that is transparent.
• A bed bug that has had a blood meal will look red or dark red. This is because blood can be seen inside the abdomen of the insect.
• A bed bug is most likely to be oval-shaped, but it may be more pilled-shaped if it is bloated from a blood meal.
• A bed bug may look black. This is because you might see the black excrement inside its body.
• A newly hatched bed bug nymph is pale-colored.
• As a bed bug grows, it becomes tan and eventually a reddish-brown color.
• Bed bug eggs are 1mm long and pale in coloration.
• You are likely to find bed bugs together, in all stages of development: eggs, nymphs and adults.  You're also likely to find shed insect skins, black stains, and brown stains in an area of infestation.
• Several bed bugs can be huddled in an area the size of your thumbnail.

Bites

One of the first signs people notice are bed bug bites. Unfortunately, it isn't easy to link bed bugs with their bites. Why? 

• Because bed bug bites can appear during the day, rather than when you first wake up. It can take time for an allergic reaction to cause a rash or a raised red bump on your skin. This can be several hours or even several days after you've been bitten.
• Because bed bug bites are associated with a rash. Each bed bug usually bites three times. If ten bed bugs bite you, that's thirty bites you'll find on your skin. If you are bitten by nymphs, the bites are likely to only result in tiny, raised bumps surrounded by a rash. This can make all the bites look like a rash caused by an allergy to food, fabrics, or something else.
• Because some people don't have a reaction to bed bug bites. Elderly people are far more likely to have bites that go unnoticed. Children, on the other hand, can have a pronounced reaction.

If you're seeing bites, or a rash, you need to know a few ways to distinguish bed bug bites from the bites of other insects and from rashes caused by other things.

• If one bed bug bites, you'll see three bites that are near each other—possibly in a line or zig-zag.
• If several bed bugs bite you, all the bites will be close to each other. Bed bugs feed in a group.
• When bed bugs feed, they move across the skin. This will make your bites look like they make a trail.

Evidence

Bed bugs hide in cracks and crevices. If you want to uncover evidence, you may need to probe creases in mattresses and box springs, or explore carpet edges. When you do this, you may uncover:

• Shed skins
• Tiny pale eggs
• Bed bug nymphs
• Adult bed bugs

Stains

When bed bugs feed, they can leave black and brown stains on sheets, pillowcases, bedding, mattresses, box springs, furniture, and more. These are caused by excrement and blood that is excreted.  

Pheromones

Bed bugs communicate with each other by expelling chemicals called pheromones. If you have enough bed bugs concentrated in one location, you may notice an unpleasant smell. Some compare the smell to coriander, but it is important to understand that there is a musty nature to the scent as well. If you smell something that doesn't smell right, it could be bed bugs.

When You Find Bed Bugs

We hope you don't ever find bed bugs, but if you do, remember that the team at McCary Pest Control is always standing by to assist you. We provide advanced pest control solutions for Tupelo residents and business owners. Reach out to us today for assistance.