Fact Sheet
- Bed bugs are small nocturnal insects that feed on the blood of humans and other warm-blooded hosts. They prefer to feed on human blood, but will also bite mammals and birds
- Adult bed bugs are reddish-brown, flattened, oval, and wingless, with microscopic hairs that give them a banded appearance
- Bed bugs prefer dark areas
- Bed bugs tend to hide near the bed or where the person normally sleeps
- Prior to feeding, they are about 1/4 inch long and flat as paper. They are large enough to be seen with the naked eye. After feeding, they turn dark red and become bloated.
- Bed bugs eggs are whitish, shaped like a pear and about the size of a pinhead. Clusters of 10-50 eggs can be found in cracks and crevices.
- Bed bugs who feed regularly can live up to ten months, while those without adequate feeding can live a little more than a year. During the course of their lifetime a female can lay 200-400 eggs. The eggs hatch within 10 days of laying.
- Bed bugs feed at night and hide during the day (90% of their life is spent in hiding areas). Bed bugs are unlikely to be active during the day. Their bites can be found all over the body, especially around the face, neck, upper torso, arms and hands. Both male and female bed bugs bite.
- Bed bugs can survive up to six months without feeding.
- Bed bugs molt 5 times in their life times
- Bed bugs go through 5 nymphal stages until they reach maturity, a process which usually takes between 32 to 48 days.
- Adult bed bugs can survive for up to seven months without blood and have been known to live in empty buildings for up to one year.
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