What Do Bed Bugs Look Like?

There’s no better way to ruin a good night’s sleep than to spot something crawling across your bed, especially when the first place our minds go to is thoughts of bedbugs; tiny parasites that make a meal of us in our sleep. Bed bugs are a household name and the stars of a nursery rhyme, but even if we know “Sleep tight, don’t let the bed bugs bite!”, how many of us would know a bed bug if we saw one? Their tiny size and reclusive nature can make them hard to spot and even harder to identify without the proper training. At Black Diamond Pest Control, our technicians have the expertise to locate and provide bed bug treatment at all stages, and we have a few tips to help you identify these pests if you suspect they’ve made their home in your mattress (or other places in your home).

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It can be hard to know what bed bugs look like due to their size; even at their largest, the bugs rarely grow more than five millimeters in length, making them easy to miss when not in groups. Averaging about the size of an apple seed, bed bugs have no wings and a usually flat shape, though this varies depending on whether or not they’ve eaten. Bed bugs that have recently fed will be far more rounded, and you will be able to see the bright blood in their abdomen. Reddish brown in color as adults, bed bugs start their life as white eggs the size of a pinhead.Hatching from these after just a week or more of gestation, the infant nymphs that emerge will be white and almost too small to see with the naked eye. As they grow and feed, they gain the rusty color of adults.

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If there are bed bugs in your home, another way to identify them is by the shed skins they leave behind, as there are plenty left in their wake. These empty husks are around the same size and shape as living bugs, but will be lighter in color. Bed bugs are more active at night. You’re more likely to spot living bugs when they move, as they will rapidly scurry to avoid being caught in the open and hide in the nearest crevice they can find. If they have infested your mattress, you’re likely to find them crawling over the sheets, pillows, or comforter if not on the headboard or the walls around the bed. Though they can be found alone, they will usually cluster together in their favorite hiding spaces. When there are enough of them these spaces can form a“crust” of dead bugs, eggs, shed skins and droppings.

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Few things can be more alarming than spotting a bug you even think could be a bed bug, but thankfully Black Diamond Pest Control is here to help with excellent bed bug control options! If you think a few parasites are making a free meal of you and your loved ones, give us a call at 877-DEAD-BUG today! Our office agents can answer any questions and get you back on track for a good night's rest!

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