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Bed Bugs

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Rove’s Bed Bug Service

Rove Pest Control - Bed Bugs

Rove Pest Control - Bed Bugs

Bed Bug Facts: Species and Distribution

There are 3 main kinds of species of bed bugs, the Tropical Bed Bug, the Common Bed Bug, and the Bat Bug. These are the most common bed bugs to cause problems in your home. These can be hard to distinguish between by the naked eye, and treating for the wrong kind of bed bugs can lead to poor results. Tropical Bed Bugs This species of bed bug is far less common in the United States than the common bed bug, and as its name suggests, is usually found in tropical warmer climates. These tropical bed bugs can still travel across the United States and cause problems outside of the warmer climates, but it is far more rare that they do. There are sever kinds of bugs that can be mistaken for the Common Bed Bug, and you’ll need to closely examine the bugs to determine which pest you really have. Some species you’ll need to look at under a microscope or magnifying glass to tell what they are. The Common Bed Bug This form of bed bug is typically the one you’ll find causing trouble in your home. These pests have been bothering humans for thousands of years and have even been discovered as fossils and in literature as far back as ancient Egypt. The Common Bed Bug is visible to the naked eye, but it can be hard to tell what species it is without proper training. Adult bed bugs are brown to reddish-brown, oval-shaped, flattened, and about 1/4 to 5/8 inch long. Their flat shape enables them to hide in cracks and crevices. After a blood meal, the body elongates and becomes swollen. Eggs are not known to be placed on the host’s body but are found on surfaces near where the host sleeps or nests. Bed bugs have a beaklike piercing-sucking mouthpart system. Adults have small, stubby, nonfunctional wing pads. Newly hatched nymphs are nearly colorless, becoming brownish as they mature. Nymphs have the general appearance of adults. Eggs are white and about 1/32 inch long. Female adult bed bugs have symmetrical, rounded abdomens while the male’s will be more pointed and asymmetrical. Bat Bugs Bat Bugs are another one of the most common bugs that act like the Common Bed Bug and can often cause problems in your home. These pests are thought to be even older than the Common Bed Bug and date back to times when humans used to live in caves along side bats. It’s thought that these pests stayed in caves and continued to feed on cave dwelling bats, while another branch followed humans as they left caves and eventually formed the Common Bed Bug species we know today. These pest don’t usually live in beds and furniture like the Common Bed Bug, and are usually found in living spaces common to bats, like attics and chimneys. They do however migrate from time to time down to other parts of the home and can end up infesting areas similar to the Common Bed Bug. They can become especially significant after host bats leave an area after significant time such as after hibernation leaving the bat bugs no choice but to seek out another host for survival.

Food Sources of Bed bugs

All bed bugs including the Tropical Bed bugs, Bat Bugs, or the Common Bed Bug feed on blood. Although the preferred host is humans for Common Bed Bugs, they will feed on other animals, such as poultry, mice, rats, birds, dogs, and cats if necessary. The Bat Bug does prefer to feed only on bats for example, but they also have been known to feed on human blood in various situations. They normally feed at night, but may feed in the daylight in rooms that are not used at night. Bed bugs are not generally considered disease carriers. Several diseases have been tested for transmission, but it is currently not an issue. Chagas disease is one that bed bugs are capable of transmitting, but it is not something they typically are in contact with or carrying. They do suck blood from their host with piercing mouthparts but the bite is painless. One reason it is painless is that bed bugs inject a mild anesthetic to numb the area they are biting so when they feed most people don’t wake up. In addition to the area being numbed, many people don’t show bite symptoms for days or weeks, and some people never show bite mark symptoms. The skin may become irritated or inflamed due to the salivary fluid injected by the bed bugs. A small, hard, swollen, white welt may develop at the site of each bite. If you experience biting sensations during the day, it may be an allergic reaction. While bed bugs can feed as often as every week, some can go months and in ideal conditions, bed bugs can last over a year without feeding.

Growth Stages of bed bugs and Reproductive Facts about bed bugs

Why are bed bugs such a problem? The females lay about 200 eggs, usually at the rate of three or four a day, in cracks and crevices in the floor or bed. One major reason bed bugs are such a problem is how fast they can multiply and spread.  As many bed bugs live on average around 2 to 4 months, this means a few bed bugs could quickly turn into a big problem. Females lay eggs after a blood meal. Eggs will hatch in one or two weeks into nymphs. Newly hatched nymphs begin feeding immediately. Bed bugs nymphs will stay in the first instar stage until they get their first meal. At room temperature, and with an available food supply, the nymph period will last 14 to 30 days. Bed bugs will molt and grow several times throughout their life and will molt five different times before reaching adulthood. Before each molting and stage of growth bed bugs will require a meal to move on to the next stage of development. The life cycle stages of a bed bug are egg, nymph, and adult. With each successive stage of growth bed bugs can go longer without a meal. They will mate soon after becoming mature, so under favorable conditions, the time from egg hatching to egg producing will be four to nine weeks. Bed bugs reproduce through traumatic insemination meaning that females are stabbed and injected by the males. This process can cause the female to move away from the main population to avoid being punctured to death. This also leads to the spreading of bed bug populations to areas that would not be expected.

Ideal living spaces for bed bugs, how to prevent bed bugs, and bed bugs developing resistance

Bed bugs are the fastest growing pest problem in the world. They are difficult to locate, quick to populate and swiftly spread from place to place. For these reasons, Rove Pest Control uses the most proactive, precise and innovative resources to combat any and all bed bug issues. From your initial inspection until the last bed bug has dropped dead, Rove will provide you with the most accurate solutions for bed bug elimination. Bed bugs don’t just live in beds and can be found throughout your home. Especially if you misidentified the bed bug for a bat bug or other kinds of pests you might find pests similar to bed bugs in many parts of your home. The Common Bed Bug can be found in places like between floor boards, in crevices on beds, on furniture, on clothing, inside electronics, in luggage, and more. Bed bugs don’t just come from sleazy motels. Bed bugs like to travel and they can get into your home through a variety of methods. The Most Common Causes Of Bed Bug Infestation Travel – plane, hotel, motel, train, bus, taxi, etc. Hitchhiking – pets, luggage, boxes, clothing, furniture, etc. Neighbors – nearby dwellings are infested Wild Animals – rodents, birds, bats, etc. Clutter – provides the perfect nesting site.

Tips on how to prevent bed bugs

Although it would be impossible to completely prevent bed bugs, there are several steps that can be taken to lessen the possibility of an infestation. Rove educates its customers on what to watch for when traveling, regular cleaning tips and specific home adjustments to reduce harborage spots for bed bugs. Customers are also offered inspections and a variety of products that will assist in keeping them bed bug free. learn more about how to prevent bed bugs…

Treatment for bed bugs

Unfortunately many species of bed bugs are becoming more and more resistant to traditional forms of pesticide treatments. A shift that we have made at Rove Pest Control to get better results is a combination of using pest control products along side of a state of the art heat treatment method. Rove uses the most technologically advanced equipment to provide its customers with the most effective treatment for any of their bed bug issues. In fact, bed bug heat treatment has been identified as the treatment with the best effect for bed bug control. Bed bug heat treatment is a safe and environmentally friendly process that uses dry heat to kill the entire life cycle of bed bugs. learn more about treatments for bed bugs… To prepare for treatment, a customer should: wash and dry all bedding at hot temperatures, remove all pillows and either dry-clean or replace them, inspect mattress for brown or black spots, and vacuum to remove dust, lint, and other matter from the mattress, its cover and the box springs. After vacuuming, remove the vacuum bag, place it in a sealed plastic bag and discard it.

Bed Bug Services

Bed Bug Services

If your Minnesota home is under attack from bed bugs, call the experts at Rove: 651-433-6050. Our courteous pest control specialists from one of our 4 offices: St. PaulMinneapolisOakdale & Brooklyn Park will be able to assist.

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