Vermatech Pest Control
Keeper's Corner
Kennylands Road
Sonning Common
Reading
Berks RG4 9JP
Tel 0118 972 4895
Fax 0118 972 4518
Bed
Bug (Cimex lectularius)
I am sure you will have
heard the saying "Sleep tight and don't let the bed bugs
bite" but mention the bed bug
today and most people will think you are talking about house dust
mites, such has been the relative demise of the one and the ascendancy
of the other both in reality and in the publicity attached to
them. This is quite a remarkable turn about in knowledge and awareness
when one considers that in the late nineteenth century more than
70% of Britains housing stock was infested by bed bugs.
Common bed bugs
often come into a home via second hand articles, furniture or
suitcases/luggage. As a consequence areas of cities that cater
for budget international travellers appear to have rather more
infestations than other areas. Almost certainly many of these
have arisen because bed bugs have secreted themselves in the luggage
of people sleeping in infested premises elsewhere and then crawled
out and infested other premises.
Bed bugs are active
only at night, usually just before dawn. During the day they hide
in cracks and crevices in walls, floors, beds and furniture. When
only a few bed bugs are present, they lie close to human sleeping
areas; when numerous, they can be found in many rooms of the house.
A characteristic bed bug odour is frequently present
in a home infested with bed bugs.
Bed bugs are oval,
chestnut brown and are flattened from top to bottom. Adult bed
bugs measure about 4-7mm in length. The female will lay up to
200 plus eggs in small batches of about half a dozen a day attaching
them to the surface as she moves along. The species requires a
minimum temperature of at least 11degrees C to hatch successfully.
Bed bugs show an incomplete life cycle; that is when the eggs
hatch, a small nymphal form of the bed bug emerges. Bed bugs grow
by moulting several times. Nymphs look very much like the adults
except they are smaller and not sexually mature. There are five
nymphal molts and each nymph must have a blood meal to be able
to moult to the next size. Adults feed once a week on average,
but feed many times during their four months or longer life span.
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on this site is copyright 1999-2008 to Andrew Green Pest Control Ltd
(t/as Vermatech Pest Control) - All Rights Reserved.
Under
the Trade Marks Act 1994 of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the
logo and marks Vermatech
have been registered under Nos. 2431304 and 2431398 as of the date 31
October 2006 in the name of Andrew Green Pest Control Ltd.