Bedbug Signs –4 signs you have bedbugs

The top 4 signs you may have a bedbug infestation in your home are:

1. Bedbug bites

Bedbug bites are fairly generic and often resemble mosquito or flea bites. A good indicator though is the pattern of the bites.

A peculiarity of bedbug bites is the tendency to find the bites lined up in a row or located in a cluster of 3-4 bites.  Specialists refer to this as the “breakfast,lunch,and dinner”bedbug bite pattern signifying the sequential feeding that occurs from site to site within a bedbug bite cluster.

Bedbugs are most active at night and will bite any exposed areas of skin.  The face,neck,hands,and arms are common sites for bedbug bites.  Small,flat,or raised bumps on the skin are the most common sign;redness,swelling,and itching commonly occur.

The reaction to bedbug bites is usually limited to localized itching and swelling at the site of the bite. If the itching sensation is intense and you scratch the bites,there is a chance of causing infection. For most people,ice and anti-itch cream is sufficient for treating bedbug bites.

2. Blood and fecal stains on bedding or mattress

You’ll often find blood or fecal stains on mattress seams and in other cracks and crevices. Bed bugs are small and flat and often remain hiding in such places.

Sometimes bedbugs are interrupted during feeding if move or roll over while in bed.  Red stains on your bedding or mattress can be the result of squished bedbugs. Bedbugs may also leave a blackish looking trail of fecal specks on your mattress,bedding,or bed. The spots will be about the size of pepper grains.

Take apart your bed and check your headboard,mattress and box spring very carefully –there are often the most undisturbed parts of the bed and make a comfortable nest for bedbugs.  Also check seams your pillows,furniture cushions,baseboards,and side table for both bedbug blood and fecal stains.

3. Bedbug eggs or exoskeletons

Exoskeletons are the hard outer shell of a bedbug. This shell protects the bed bug and provides the structure for its muscles and organs. When the bed bug grows,it does so through a process called molting.

During the process of molting,the outer layer of the bed bug’s exoskeleton (called the cuticle) cracks and is sloughed off. This allows the bed bug to expand. A new shell will harden and the bed bug will be at a new size. They leave the exoskeletons behind. When you see them,it is an indication that bed bugs are there.

There are three stages in the bedbug life cycle – egg,nymph and adult. Bedbugs look vastly different based the current life stage.  The female lays her eggs in batches of 10 to 50,they are white in colour and deposited on various surfaces with a thin glue. The eggs are white and about 1 mm long. The bedbug nymphs look like adult bedbugs but are smaller. Female bedbugs lay about 200 to 500 eggs in a lifetime. In ideal conditions,the bedbug eggs will hatch in about seven days.   The nymphs will molt five times before reaching adulthood,taking a blood meal between each molt.  With a regular food source available,the nymphs will molt every three days.

Check for bedbug eggs and exoskeletons in the same places you would for bed bug feces:seams of pillows and cushions,folds in bedding,baseboards,etc.

4. A sweet aroma

When a significant bedbug infestation is present,it is possible to smell a sickly sweet aroma. Below is a list of bedbug odour descriptions we have heard:

-coconut or rotting coconut

-almonds or rotten almonds

-raspberries or rotting rasperries

-coriander

-old shoes

-an old granola bar

-mold

Keep in mind that if your infestation is not severe,you may not smell anything.